Two Is Better Than One
by efficacious humorosity
Summary: AU.  The story of the Potter twins and their years at Hogwarts and their battle against the Dark Lord.  Told in broken up flashbacks.  Non-canon pairings. R/OC, H/Hr
1. Chapter 1

**A/N: Don't own, don't sue. The first several chapters of this story will be told in flashback form, so it'll be very broken up. I am not rewriting the series with a twin in it, I wish to avoid doing that. Major points of the plot will be left out, as I'm assuming everyone reading this has already read the books. I'm just covering some key moments and adding a few of my own. If I leave out what you consider to be a key moment, please tell me by way of review and if I agree with you, I'll try to work it in at a later point. But please review anyway. Hehe. I'm not intending to pick up any of my old stories at the moment, and please don't ask me to. Anyway, enjoy! **

Chapter 1: Year the First

"_Avada Kedavra!_"

Lily Potter saw a flash of green light erupt from the foyer and heard what must be the dying screams of her husband. And he was gone.

Just. Like. That.

She bit back her grief, knowing that it now fell to her to protect her children. She glanced backward at the crib in which her twins lay. Sandy was sleeping, blissfully unaware of the death that was quickly enveloping her. How she could sleep through the noise, Lily could not fathom. Harry, however, seemed to be awake. Lily supposed he had woken up when she had hastily placed him in Sandy's crib instead of his own. He looked confused and concerned, but he did not cry. One cubby arm was draped almost protectively over his sister.

Lily's head whipped back around when a high, cold voice spoke. "It is not _you_, I want," said Voldemort, his red eyes gleaming hungrily. "Step aside, and I will spare you your life. The Dark Lord is merciful, especially to those as powerful and as promising as you…"

"No," Lily said, somehow managing to make her voice sound strong and unwavering, though she could feel the hands that were gripping the crib shaking. "Never! You'll have to kill me if you want to kill my children!"

"Don't be foolish," he snapped. "Let me have the children, and you can live."

"No! Please, not my children!" she cried. "Please!"

"If you will not step aside," he said mercilessly, "then you shall die. And what a shame, too. Such a pretty little Mudblood. _Avada Kedavra!_"

In a flash of green light, Lily Potter crumpled to the floor. Dead.

Harry gave a loud cry, which slowly roused his sister from her slumber.

_One curse should be sufficient enough to kill the both of them, _thought Voldemort.

The Dark Lord turned his wand on the Potter twins.

TIBTOTIBTOTIBTO

Harry Potter woke to the sounds of scratching. Sleepily, he rubbed his eyes and sat up in bed. What _was _that noise? Was someone scratching on his door? He put on his glasses and looked around his room, quickly finding the source of the noise. His twin sister Sandy was at their desk, writing, probably in her journal. Glancing at the clock, he discovered it was half past one in the morning. "What're you doing up at this time?" he asked thickly, still half asleep.

"Oh!" she said, stifling a cry of surprised. "I couldn't sleep. I'm sorry, Harry. I didn't mean to wake you."

"It's alright," he said, climbing out of bed. He stood behind her, peering over her shoulder, and she made no move to block his view of her journal. There were no secrets between the siblings. "You're writing in your journal again?"

"Yes," she said. "I had another dream. About a flying a motorcycle, Harry, it was the _strangest_ thing."

"Really?" he said, his eyebrows rising on his forehead. "That's the same dream I had. I wonder if we've ever had the same dreams before…"

She shrugged and continued writing. Sandy Potter was a tall, lean girl of ten years, nearly eleven. She had silky, jet black hair that reached to midway down her back and emerald green eyes. She looked almost exactly like her twin brother, except for the glasses. Her eyesight had somehow miraculously cured itself overnight after a rather stressful day of being teased about her glasses by her classmates. Harry was about the same height as his sister, though perhaps slightly taller. He had the same emerald green eyes and the same jet black hair, though he could never get his to lie flat like his sister's would. He still had to wear glasses, as his vision had not miraculously fixed itself, although there had been some curious incidents involving some bad haircuts his aunt had given him and his hair magically regrowing overnight. Though the most remarkable similarity that they shared by far were identical scars on their foreheads, both in the shape of a lightning bolt.

They were very close, as their parents had died when they were young in a car crash, according to their aunt and uncle. Aunt Petunia and Uncle Vernon had forced them into the same bedroom since they had arrived at Number 4 Privet Drive, and though most siblings would hate sharing a room with one another, it was a consolation for the twins. The only good thing about being in the Dursleys' home was when they were able to spend time together away from them.

"Do you think it'll be any different?" Harry asked suddenly.

"What d'you mean?" she said, putting down her pen and closing her diary. She turned in the chair, fixing her emerald green eyes on her brother.

"Going to a different school than Dudley," he explained. "We're going to Stonewall in the fall, and he's going to Smeltings. Will it be better, d'you think?"

"Yes," she said, without hesitation. "I mean, obviously because Dudley won't be there to make sure everyone hates us. But also… I can just _feel _it, Harry. Things are about to get better. Can't you feel it?"

"Yeah," he said, nodding slowly and realizing that he did, in fact, agree with her. "I do."

After a few moments of comfortable silence, he said, "We should probably get back to bed. We have to get up early for Dudley's birthday, and we wouldn't want to wake up Uncle Vernon."

"You're right," she said, grimacing. As they climbed into their respective beds, she said, "Good night, Harry."

"Night, Sandy."

TIBTOTIBTOTIBTO

"Dudley, get the mail."

Uncle Vernon did not look up from his newspaper as he ordered his son.

"Make Sandy get it!" Dudley whined, stuffing more bacon into his mouth.

Sticking up for his sister, Harry countered, "Make Dudley get it!"

"Don't worry about it, I'll get it," Sandy said hastily, as Harry narrowly missed a jab from Dudley's Smelting stick. She hurried into the hall and toward the front door to get the mail. Wishing to make the most of the time she was away from the table, she looked through it. "Bill... bill… bill… bill… junk…" she muttered to herself. Then she came across something rather stranger.

An envelope, sealed with red wax with some sort of crest on it, addressed to her and her brother.

Mr. Harry Potter and Ms. Sandy Potter

The Smallest Bedroom

4 Privet Drive

Little Whinging

Surrey

Stifling a gasp, she quickly hid it under her shirt and hurried back to the kitchen, handing the rest of the mail to Uncle Vernon. Taking her seat at the table next to Harry once more, she surreptitiously handed the letter to him under the table. His green eyes widened, looking first at the letter, then at her, then back to the letter. This did not go unnoticed by Dudley.

"Sandy's got a letter!" he cried, pointing a pudgy finger at her.

"What's that?" Uncle Vernon said, a dangerous gleam coming into his eyes. "Give it here, girl."

Glaring daggers at Dudley, she handed the letter over to Uncle Vernon. His eyes widened, and he looked almost frightened. "P-Petunia!" he cried.

"What is it, Vernon?" she said, hurrying over. When she saw the letter, she turned very pale. "Is it…?"

"It must be," he said darkly. "Who else could've known…?"

"Burn it," Petunia said firmly.

"No!" burst out Harry. "That's _our_ letter! Give it to _us_!"

"I'll do no such thing," growling Uncle Vernon, rising from the table. Sandy made a wild grab for it, but he pushed her down, and she hit the floor rather hard.

"Don't hit her!" Harry roared, dropping to the ground to help his sister up.

"You will not speak to me like that! After all I've given to you! Petunia, lock them in their room!"

TIBTOTIBTOTIBTO

_Beep_. Midnight.

The Potter twins turned eleven amid the sounds of Dudley's snores and a raging storm outside. "Happy birthday, Harry," Sandy said, trying to sound bright as she drew her brother in for a hug.

"Happy birthday," he replied in turn, his voice rather glum.

_Bang!_

The front door was knocked down, and a large, shadowy figure stepped into the building. An oversized man stepped into the dim light, his face almost completely covered by an unruly beard. "Blimey, it's rainin' ou' there, innit?" he said cheerfully.

The twins were simply speechless. Quiet whimpering in the background told them that the Dursleys had woken up at the sound of his entrance and were now huddling, scared, at a distance. "Me name is Rubeus Hagrid, Keeper of Keys and Grounds at Hogwarts," the man said, puffing his chest out proudly.

"I'm sorry," Sandy said somewhat timidly, finally finding her voice. "Hogwarts?"

"Hogwarts School o' Witchcraft an' Wizardry," the man called Hagrid said. "Where yer mum an' dad went to school o' course!"

Harry began to laugh. "Don't you get it, Sandy?" Harry said. "The Dursleys finally remember our birthday, and they decided to prank us. It'd actually be rather funny, if it weren't sort of cruel…" But as he turned to look back the Dursleys, they didn't look like they found this very funny at all. Aunt Petunia was as white as paper, Dudley looked like he had wet himself, and Uncle Vernon was trying to shield them as best he could, clutching a shotgun in his hands.

"This is no joke, Harry!" Hagrid cried. "They didn'… they didn' tell yeh?"

"Tell us what?" Sandy asked, becoming less afraid of Hagrid and more irritated with the Dursleys.

"Tha' you're a wizard," Hagrid said, bending down to almost eye level with Harry. Then turning to Sandy, he said, "An' you're a witch."

"They most certainly are not! We swore they'd never go to that school when we took them in!" Uncle Vernon shouted.

"So it's true!" Harry cried, turning on his uncle. "You lied to us, all these years? Were our parents…? What really happened to them? You told us they died in a car crash!"

"A car crash!" Hagrid said, looking insulted. "A car crash could not 'ave killed Lily an' James Potter! No sir!"

"You filthy liars!" Sandy shrieked, advancing angrily on her relatives. Uncle Vernon, despite the fact that he was the one holding the weapon, recoiled. None of them had ever seen her quite so angry. Despite all the years of living with the Dursleys, Sandy had always been the twin to bear the burden quietly, complaining very few times in the past ten years. Apparently, that was to be no more. "We're _going_ to the school!"

"No!" roared her uncle. "We won't pay for you to be taught magic tricks by some fool in a pointed hat!"

"Never," said Hagrid dangerously and pulling out a large pink umbrella from seemingly nowhere, "insult Albus Dumbledore in fron' o' me."

He pointed the umbrella at Dudley, then there was a flash of yellow light… screaming… squealing… and a pig's tail…

It was probably their best birthday ever.

TIBTOTIBTOTIBTO

Harry and Sandy sat across from in each other in an otherwise empty compartment on the Hogwarts Express, chatting nervously.

"I told you things were going to be better," she told him knowingly, a grin spreading over her lips.

He smiled and said, "I know you did. And you were right."

Just then, the compartment door slid open. It was one of the redheaded children they had met on the platform. "Can I sit here? Every other seat is taken."

"Yeah, sure," said Sandy. The redhead grinned and sat next to her.

"My name's Ron," he said. "Ron Weasley."

"I'm Sandy Potter," she said, "and this is my brother, Harry."

"So you really _are_… them?" Ron said, awed. "I thought Fred and George were just joking. They do that quite a lot. So do you really have the… the scars?"

"Yes," Harry said, lifting his bangs so Ron could see his.

Soon, however, they had launched into a discussion of Quidditch, wizard sweets, and the wizarding world in general. It turned out that the twins were just as fascinated with the wizarding world as Ron was with the Muggle world. "So these… contumors…"

"Com...pu…tors," Sandy said slowly, chuckling. "They're used for playing games and doing work."

"Wow," Ron said. "And how do they work?"

"I'm not really sure, it's rather complicated," Sandy said. "Harry, d'you know how computers work?"

Harry looked up from his Chocolate Frog cards. "Huh? Oh, no, I don't. Not really…"

The compartment door slid open, and a bushy-haired girl poked her head in. "Why haven't you changed yet?" she said. "We're nearly there, and you don't want to make us all look like fools. Especially you two- I know who you are! You're the Potter twins! Well, you best change. I've got to go, I'm helping a boy named Neville look for his toad." Turning to Ron, she quickly added, "Oh, and you've got some dirt on your nose. You may want to take care of that." With that, she left.

"Rather bossy, isn't she?" Ron said when she had left.

"I'm probably going to get stuck with her," Sandy said miserably. "Ask Harry- I always get stuck with the nutters."

"It's true," Harry said, nodding his head. "In gym class, she was always partnered with the girls who had anger management issues."

"Bloody unlucky for you, mate," Ron said, grinning ruefully at her. He began to rub furiously at the dirt on his nose.

"Oh, let me get it," Sandy said. She licked her thumb and rubbed the dirt off his nose for him, as Ron turned pink all the way to his flaming red hair, mumbling his thanks.

Just then, the train began to slow down.

"We must be here!"

TIBTOTIBTOTIBTOTIBTO

"POTTER! Both of you, get down here! Now!"

Harry and Sandy exchanged panic-stricken glances as both their stomachs dropped. The momentary high of realizing that they had shown up Malfoy had worn off quickly since they realized that Professor McGonagall was waiting for them on the ground. They landed quickly, side by side, Harry still clutching Neville's Rememberall in his hand. "Come with me," she said sharply, and they obediently followed.

"We're going to be expelled," Harry muttered miserably to his sister so only she could hear. She grabbed his wrist and squeezed it quickly and reassuringly before letting it go again. As they passed, their fellow Gryffindors tried to make excuses for them, but to no avail. McGonagall would not listen.

After what felt like hours of walking, they arrived outside Professor Quirrel's classroom. "Professor Quirrel, may I borrow Wood please?" McGonagall asked.

"Wood?" Sandy said, her eyebrows knitting together. "Is she going to beat us?"

Harry only had time to shrug before McGonagall reentered the hallway, followed by a burly fifth year Gryffindor. "Wood," she said, sounding ecstatic, "I have found you a Seeker and a Chaser."

"What?" he said, his eyes widening in disbelief. "Really, Professor?"

"Yes," she said, and there was no doubt about it this time- she was _happy_. "I saw them flying around out there- their first time, too!- they're naturals!"

"Yes, yes," Wood said, circling them now, as if they were pieces of meat. Looking at Harry, he said, "This one is light and speedy, he'll make an excellent Seeker." Turning his gaze on Sandy, he said, "She's slightly heavier-"

At this, she snorted indignantly. Ignoring her, Wood picked up her arm, feeling her muscles.

"-and a very strong arm, too! Professor, this is simply brilliant! We may actually have a chance at the Cup this year!"

Later that night at dinner, Sandy related the story to Ron while Harry shoveled food into his mouth at an alarming rate. "Wow," Ron said breathlessly, looking admiringly at her. "You two must be the youngest players in about a century!"

"We are," said Harry, pausing in his feasting for just a moment. "That's what Wood said."

"I hope we do well, though," Sandy said, looking nervous and beginning to play with her food. "Everyone is going to expect a lot out of us…"

"Don't worry," Ron said, grinning broadly at her and placing a hand on her shoulder. "You're going to be fantastic. I just know it."

TIBTOTIBTOTIBTO

"Follow me, first years!" cried Percy Weasley. "The troll shan't get you if you're with me!"

Ron snorted doubtfully, but they continued to follow his brother along with the other Gryffindors. Sandy, however, seized up with a sudden thought and grabbed both Ron and Harry by the collars and pulled them behind a coat of armor. "What're you doing?" Ron cried. "There's a troll loose!"

"Exactly," she whispered. "Hermione doesn't know about the troll. It's your fault she's been crying in the girl's bathroom all day anyway."

"Sandy's right," Harry agreed, nodding his head.

Ron opened his mouth, as if to protest, but then he closed it and nodded. "Lead the way," he said. Sandy grabbed both their hands and lead them as stealthily as possible to the girl's bathroom that Hermione had supposedly made her home. However, she froze in fright when she saw the troll approaching.

"Over here!" Harry hissed, thinking quickly. He dragged both his sister and Ron behind a statue, though the troll looked so stupid that Harry thought it may not have noticed if they had merely stood there gaping at it. The troll slowly walked into the bathroom, dragging its club upon the ground as it went. Once it was inside, the boys leapt out from behind the statue and locked the bathroom door.

"Yes!" Ron cried, victoriously.

Finally coming out of her fear induced trance, Sandy yelled, "You complete idiots!"

"What're you on about?" Ron asked, looking hurt. "We just trapped the troll!"

"_Hermione is in that bathroom_!" she shrieked, quickly unlocking the door and rushing inside, the boys right behind her.

The scene before them was this: Hermione was hiding underneath a sink, looking as though she was paralyzed with fear, as Sandy had been just moments ago. The troll was advancing upon her, raising its club. "You get her, we'll take care of him. Go!" Harry told Ron.

Ron hurried over to Hermione and began to pull on her arm. "Move," he said urgently. "Come _on_, Hermione, we've got to _move_!" But she couldn't seem to move at all. "Sandy, help me with her, would you?"

Nearly screaming in frustration, Sandy hurried over to Ron and, each of them taking an arm, they hoisted Hermione to her feet, moving her closer to the door, just as the troll demolished a sink or two. Depositing Hermione on the ground, Ron and Sandy turned just in time to see Harry launch himself at the troll and grab onto the top of its head, his wand lodging itself up its nose in the process. As it raised its club to surely kill Harry, Sandy cried, "Ron, _do _something!"

"_Wingardium Leviosa_!"

The floor shook, as though an earthquake had struck, when the troll hit the ground. Harry clambered over its body and extracted his wand from its nose. He slowly walked over to them. "All right there, Hermione?" he asked.

She nodded meekly in response. After a moment, she said quietly, "How can I…?"

"Don't worry," Sandy said, grinning and hugging her. "You can thank us later."

TIBTOTIBTOTIBTO

"Girl Potter has the Quaffle- what a remarkably good young Chaser that girl is- she's heading down the field, she's going to score-! Oh no, a Bludger takes just the tip of her broomstick off and she's knocked off, her broomstick spinning into the stands! She's falling, she's falling- oh and her brother, Boy Potter has caught her! Magnificent catch by Boy Potter, though I wonder if he knows that he's supposed to catch the Snitch and not his sister…"

"Are you alright?" Harry asked his sister urgently as she got herself settled behind him on his Nimbus Two Thousand.

"Yes, I'm fine," she said. "Just had a right good scare, that's all. Why don't you have Wood call a time out so you can put me down on the ground or something? You can't play with me hanging onto you like this." As she spoke, her grip around her brother's midriff tightened.

"Okay," he said, starting to fly toward the goal posts where Wood hovered. However, as he did so, his broom gave a sickening lurch. He paused in midair, then tried to continue forward again, but his broom lurched once more.

"What is _that_?" Sandy cried, her grip on her brother tightening even more.

"I have no idea!" he said. "It's like it's trying to buck us off!"

They continued to hold on for dear life, as the lurches and bucks of the broom became more and more violent. Soon, everyone below them had stopped to watch what was going on, and the Weasley twins were circling below them, having give up on trying to pull them onto their brooms. The broom gave a rather violent buck and Sandy lost her grip on her brother's torso, slipping off the back end of the broom with a cry. Luckily, George Weasley caught her and settled her onto his broomstick. "Having a bad day, milady?" he said, smiling at her.

"You have no idea," she said, grimacing and looking up at her twin brother worriedly.

Down in the stands, Ron turned ghostly white when Sandy slipped off the broom and looked as though he might be sick. "Come on, Hermione…" he said, trying to catch a glimpse of her bushy brown hair near where the teachers were sitting. She had gone to distract Snape.

After a few more agonizing moments, the broom stopped lurching and Harry (who had been dangling by his hand) clambered back on and zoomed toward the ground. He stumbled as he was catching the Snitch and fell from a small height of four feet, but he managed to catch the Snitch in his mouth nonetheless.

_They had won. _

TIBTOTIBTOTIBTO

Harry clambered through the portrait hole, his (well, _their_- his and Sandy's, that is) new Invisibility Cloak trailing behind him like a banner, and excitedly ran up the stairs to the first year girls' dormitory. However, in his excitement, he didn't notice that the steps turned into a slide beneath his feet, and he slid backwards to the bottom, landing with a rather loud thump on the floor. After a moment, his sister stuck her head out the doorway to see what the commotion was all about. "Harry!" she hissed. "What the bloody hell are you doing? It's nearly two in the morning, and you aren't supposed to come up here anyway!"

"Sandy, I've _got_ to show you something!" he said excitedly. "Come on!"

Yawning, she slid down the ramp. Once she had reached the bottom, he grabbed her hand and did not let go of it until he had dragged her all the way to the nearly empty classroom that he had just left. "_This_ is what you wanted to show me? You got me out of bed… at this hour… for a classroom with a mirror in it."

"Look _in_ the mirror," he said patiently, taking her shoulders and guiding her steps so that she was standing in the perfect position.

She gasped softly. "Harry, is that…?"

"Mum and Dad?" he said. "Yeah, that is. That's our entire family, Sandy. "All of them."

"Oh," she said, her fingers longingly touching the glassy surface of the mirror. She sat herself down in front of it, hunching down just enough so that Harry could sit behind her and see their family at the same time. "Oh, Harry. This is…" She seemed to be at a complete loss for words that would describe exactly what she was feeling. But there was no need for words. Her brother had always understood her, and he always would.

"I know."

TIBTOTIBTOTIBTO

"Hagrid is mental!" Ron cried, nursing his wounded finger. "Absolutely mental! Look at what Norbert did to me!" He shoved his finger into Sandy's face, as if she couldn't see the large bite mark from where she was sitting. "And then he told _me_ off!"

"So I've heard," she said dryly, looking up from her Potions essay. "Ron, you should really get that looked at."

"No, Madam Pomfrey might know what it is," he said, looking panicky. "It's not _that_ bad."

"Well, the way you've been going on about it, you would think your whole arm had been bitten off," she told him.

"Am I really that bad of a whiner?" Ron asked, looking a bit crestfallen.

Looking sideways at him, she sighed and said, "No, Ron, I'm only teasing. _I _think you're really brave." He turned an outrageous shade of pink at her praise. "Besides, that can't just be a normal bite, now can it? I mean… Norbert's a dragon," she said, lowering her voice to make sure no one else heard.

"Yeah," he sighed, going back to nursing his finger. "You're right, maybe I should get it looked at it. If it gets worse, I will…"

TIBTOTIBTOTIBTO

"You!" Sandy cried, seeing that it was Quirrel standing in the final room, not Snape as they had so expected.

"Yes, me," he said. "Who were you expecting?"

"Well, Snape," Harry said quickly. "He tried to kill us! At that Quidditch match!"

"Snape didn't try to kill you," Quirrel sneered. "He tried to save you. _I_ tried to kill you. Actually, I was only try to kill you." He gestured to Harry at this point. "There was no way I could make it look like an accident if both of you died in the same Quidditch match. But when that Bludger knocked her off her broomstick and you pulled her onto yours, why, it was like Christmas had come early! An easy way to off both of you _and_ make it look like an accident!"

"But… why?" Harry choked out, for Sandy seemed to be occupied with something else. She was staring past Quirrel's head at something…

"Because _I _have been trying to steal the Sorcerer's Stone, Potter! Me! This whole year! I let the troll in! And I would have succeeded, but the two of you and your nosy little friends kept sticking your noses where they don't belong. That's a nasty habit that'll get you killed one day." Quirrel turned to face the object behind him… the Mirror of Erised. "Now silence, both of you. While I try to work out how this funny little mirror works. Of course Dumbledore's protection would be something like this…"

Harry caught Sandy's eye, and she had a panicked look on her face. Neither of them knew what they were going to do.

"_Use them…_" spoke a horrible, quiet voice. Both of the twins slapped hands to their scars, which had just erupted in unbearable pain.

"Come here!" Quirrel snapped. The twins cautiously approached together. Quirrel seized Harry by the robes and placed him unceremoniously in front of the mirror. "Tell me what you see!"

Sandy screwed up her eyes tightly, wishing that Harry could hear her thoughts. _Lie, Harry. You have to lie… Lie!_

Harry looked into the mirror, and he saw his reflection smiling the holding the Sorcerer's Stone. His reflection dropped the Stone into his pocket, and suddenly his real pocket felt much heavier. _He had gotten the Stone_.

"I see myself and my sister with my family," Harry said quickly. Perhaps a little too quickly. "They're all congratulating us on making it into Hogwarts." He backed away from the mirror toward his sister, allowing the pocket with the Stone in it to brush against her so she would know. Her green eyes widened in realization, but she kept her mouth shut.

_"He is lying!_" said the cruel voice. "_Let me speak to them_."

"M-master, are you sure?" Quirrel said, looking rather frightened. "You are very weak."

"_I am quite capable of carrying a conversation, Quirrel_."

Reluctantly, he began to unwrap his headdress, to reveal to the horribly deformed face of Lord Voldemort plastered to the back of his head. Harry gasped and grabbed Sandy's hand, somehow feeling much stronger knowing that she was there with him. "_Give me the Stone,_" said Voldemort simply. "_Give me the Stone and I will spare you your lives. I may even honor both of you greatly. You're talented, having come this far at such a young age…_"

"No! Never!" growled Harry. "You killed our parents! And you tried to kill us!"

"_You're brave, just like your parents_," Voldemort said, almost chuckling. "_I know you have the Stone. And you have no chance of escaping me a second time… none at all. Just give me the Stone!_"

"No!" shrieked Sandy. Breaking Harry's grasp on her, she pushed him toward the exit and yelled, "Harry, run! Take the Stone and run!" Before he could so much as protest, she threw herself at Quirrel.

Quirrel was caught by surprise, and he hit the ground under Sandy's unexpected weight. Even more surprising than Sandy's attack was the revelation that wherever Sandy touched Quirrel, his skin erupted into painful looking red hives, causing him to cry out in pain. Sandy had a determined look plastered on her face, though she was beginning to become pale.

Harry did not run. He simply could not. How could he leave his sister? He scrambled over to her and grabbed Quirrel's face as she continued to grasp him around the throat. Harry suddenly understood why his sister looked so pale- this was all very draining. It felt as though all the energy was being drained out of him. He was vaguely aware of Sandy collapsing next to him, but then his ability to hear was dulled. The room swam before his eyes, and his vision went black.

TIBTOTIBTOTIBTO

The night before they were due to leave Hogwarts, Sandy found herself unable to sleep. Yawning, she made her way down into the common room, hoping that sitting in front of the fire and just getting some thinking done would help her insomnia. However, she was startled to find that there was already someone occupying her favorite chair by the fireplace.

"Ron?" she said. "What're you doing up at this time?"

"Oh," he said simply. "Couldn't sleep."

"Me neither," she said, sitting in the chair next to his. "Are you okay, Ron? You've been rather quiet, you know, ever since Harry and I got out of the Hospital Wing. At least… around me." She looked at him worriedly, fearing she had done something to offend him.

"No, it's nothing like that," he said hastily. After a moment of silence, he said, "It's just that… I fancy you. A lot. I have all year."

"Oh," she said, looking rather shocked. "Oh."

"You don't have to worry though," he said quickly. "I won't act any differently around you, we can still be friends." He stood from his chair, but she quickly grabbed his hand.

"Ron!" she said sharply. "Ron, I didn't say that I don't feel the same way."

He gaped at her, gray eyes wide. "Do… d'you then? D'you fancy me?"

"Yes, I do," she admitted, blushing faintly, thought it was hard to tell in the dark. "I have for the better part of the year."

"Then… why didn't you say something, just now?" he asked.

"I was just shocked, is all," she replied. "I didn't expect you to have any sort of feelings for me."

"Blimey, this is brilliant!" he said, looking deliriously happy.

"Ron, think for a moment," she said, taking both his hands and guiding him into his seat once more. "We're _eleven_. We're far too young to start a relationship. And after this second encounter with Voldemort, I'm beginning to think that Harry and I just attract trouble. I don't think we should rush into this. I'm sorry." She looked up at him apologetically.

"Of course," he mumbled. "It's as much your decision as it is mine." Then, after a moment, he said, "What do you want to do?"

She thought, then said, "Wait a few years. If we still feel the same way about each other, then... then we can have real relationship."

"Alright," he agreed. "But I'm just letting you know now, my feelings aren't going to change, Sandy. It'll always be you."

She grinned at him. "Same here."

She planted a swift kiss on his cheek before heading up the stairs to bed, finally feeling as though she could drift off to sleep, ready to face the Dursleys and whatever the world had in store for her once more.


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N: I still don't own Harry Potter… as much as I wish I did. Reviews are much appreciated. :D **

Chapter 2: Year the Second

"This is the worst summer ever."

Sandy Potter slumped on the floor against the foot of her bed, staring miserably at the window. Harry, who was sitting on his own bed, couldn't help but agree. "Well…" he said, trying to cheer her up, "what about that summer when Dudley pushed you down the stairs and you broke your arm?"

"It healed overnight, remember?" she said, waving her hand in the air absentmindedly. "Besides, we used to always expect everything to be awful. But we were expecting better things this summer…"

He knew what she meant. Even though they were forbidden to let their owls, Hedwig and Thunder, out of their cages (for Uncle Vernon and Aunt Petunia did not want them in contact with anyone from the magical world), they had at least been expecting their best friends, Ron and Hermione, to write to them. Especially Sandy. After a few days back at Privet Drive, Sandy had come clean with her brother about how Ron had admitted that he fancied her. Harry, though a bit surprised, had taken the news well and wished her the best. However, it was hard to hope for the best when it seemed as though both their best friends had forgotten about them. Not to mention-

"I can't believe that they would forget our birthday," Sandy said quietly, looking very upset. "I can understand being busy, but… Harry, it's our _birthday_."

"I know," he said softly, getting off his bed to sit on the floor beside her. He gave her a quick hug. "Happy birthday, Sandy."

"Happy birthday, Harry."

It was quite possibly one of the worst birthdays of their lives.

TIBTOTIBTOTIBTO

After de-gnoming the garden, Mrs. Weasley allowed her sons to go to sleep, and Harry and Sandy decided they might as well rest too. "Er, Sandy," Ron said, as he led the twins up the large, twisting stair case in the center of his home, "you've got a bit of a choice. You can either share a room with Ginny, or you can stay with Harry and me. It's up to you. Of course, you don't really know Ginny all that well, so… but you may prefer to stay with a girl…"

"I'd actually rather stay with you and Harry, if you don't mind," she said. "Harry and I have shared a bedroom at the Dursleys' house all our lives. I actually found it a bit weird _not_ to share a room with him at Hogwarts."

"Oh, of course, that's fine!" Ron said, fighting to keep a stupid grin off his face. "Follow me then. He led them to what felt like the very top of the house. Throwing open the door, he revealed a room that was almost entirely a rather violent shade of orange. "This is my room."

"Wicked," Harry breathed, setting his trunk down in the corner. He fixed his gaze on a poster of Ron's favorite Quidditch team, the Chudley Cannons. The players on the poster were zooming about, tossing a Quaffle back and forth.

Noticing that there were only two beds, Sandy cleared her throat. "Er, I'll just kip on the floor than, shall I?"

"No, no!" said both boys rather hastily. "You can have my bed."

Ron turned a brilliant shade of pink and glared at Harry, as though angry that he would take away his shot at being chivalrous. "No need for chivalry, boys," she chuckled. "I rather like the floor. Remember that camping trip we had to go on for Dudley's seventh birthday, Harry? When Mrs. Figg had heart surgery?"

"Oh, yes," her twin said suddenly. "That's right. You slept like a baby while everyone else tossed and turned. Likes to sleep on hard, flat surfaces, that one."

"If you insist," said Ron, looking doubtful.

"I do," she said. Turning away from the boys, she looked at Ron's dresser, where Scabbers was sleeping peacefully. "Gained a bit of weight, hasn't he?"

"Er, Ron? Where can I take a shower?" Harry asked. "I've got to smell something the awful."

"Oh, right," Ron said. "I'll show you where it is."

When he returned, he found that Sandy was still looking at his dresser, but no longer at Scabbers. She was examining drafts of letters that he had never sent. Letters that had been meant for her. Hearing his footsteps, she turned to him and said, "Ron? What are these?"

"Oh," he said, blushing once more. "They were letters I was going to send you. Those were the ones that I messed up. I just couldn't get the words right, you know?"

"Oh," she said simply, looking at them.

"I was wondering why you hadn't replied to any of _my_ letters," he said. "I was beginning to think that I had done something to offend you. Or that you didn't f- that you didn't want to be friends anymore." He ran a hand nervously through his brilliant red hair.

"Ron, you don't need to worry about that," she told him. "We weren't getting any of your letters." And she quickly relayed to him the tale of Dobby, and how he had tried to warn her and Harry of something happening at Hogwarts. "I kind of thought that you had forgotten about me."

He looked appalled and astonished at this. "Sandy, I could never forget about you," he told her. She flashed him a brilliant smile. "Sorry it took so long for us to come get you."

"S'okay, mate," she said, grinning at him once more. "I forgive you."

TIBTOTIBTOTIBTO

"Merlin! If we make it through this alive, I'm going to skin the both of you!"

Sandy glared at Harry and Ron from her seat in the back of the flying Ford Anglia. Ron frowned. She hadn't shown any signs of fancying him since that night during their first year; he was beginning to think that he had just dreamed the entire encounter. "Oh, shut up, Sandy," Harry snapped, turning around to glare at his twin. "We have to get to the school somehow."

"Right, because I'm sure Mr. and Mrs. Weasley couldn't have worked something out," she said sarcastically. Ron suddenly felt uncomfortable; he had never seen the twins so much as bicker before.

"You just don't want to get into trouble!" Harry said accusingly. "You're almost as bad as Hermione!"

"Why you-! Take it back!" she said, pulling out her wand.

"Why don't we all just calm down?" Ron said hastily, worried that Sandy may hex Harry. "Look, we're already in the air. It's too late to go back now! My mum and dad will have already realized that the car is gone."

"Fine," Sandy grumbled, putting her wand away, still glaring at her twin. "Fine."

"That's more like it," he said, breathing a sigh of relief. Dipping below the clouds again, he said, "Look! I think we're nearly there. You reckon that's the school, up in the distance?"

"Yeah," Harry said, squinting through his glasses. "I reckon so."

TIBTOTIBTOTIBTO

"Damn these Cornish pixies!"

Sandy shrieked in frustration as she picked up a book and whacked one off the top of her twin brother's head.

"That dimwit has absolutely no idea what's he's doing!" Harry cried furiously, rubbing his head before whipping out his wand to perform the Leg-Locker Curse on another pixie.

"He does too," said Hermione hotly, grabbing a particularly rambunctious pixie by the legs and hauling it into its cage. "He just wants us to learn from experience."

"That's rubbish!" cried Ron. "Harry's right, Hermione!" A pixie unexpected grabbed him by the nose and pulled him into the air, and he cried out in pain.

"Oh, bollocks," muttered Sandy. Whipping out her wand, she performed a clever Freezing Charm that Flitwick had just taught them. Ron dropped to the ground, landing with a loud thump.

"Merlin!" he said, standing up and rubbing his arse. "That hurt!"

They made quick work of putting the Cornish pixies back in their cages, mainly driven by the fear that Sandy's charm would wear off before they finished. However, they accomplished their task and made their way to lunch together. Plopping herself down at the Gryffindor table, Sandy heaved a great sigh and said, "That was brutal." She began to pile a mountain of mashed potatoes onto her plate.

"Tell me about it," Ron agreed. Checking to make sure that Hermione and Harry were in deep conversation about something the didn't understand (please-men, perhaps? The Muggle version of Aurors? His dad was always talking about them), he muttered, "Hermione's off her rocker if she thinks Lockhart's actually clever."

"Oh, I know," Sandy said, lowering her voice and beginning to eat. "She keeps reading his books over and over again, underlining the most ridiculous details and drawing little hearts around his picture."

"Really?" Ron grimaced, taking a sip of pumpkin juice. "You… you don't think he's actually… brilliant, do you? Like Hermione does?"

She gaped at him, her green eyes twinkling with laughter. "Have you lost your marbles, Ron? Fred and George hit you in the head one too many times? You _have_ heard me in his class, right? I think the man is a horrible excuse for a wizard! You, a second year student, can do much better than he can!"

"Thanks," he mumbled, turning his attentions to his food and going bright red at her praise. "Good to know not all girls are head over heels for him…"

TIBTOTIBTOTIBTO

_I am going to hex myself into next week_ _if we have to spend one more minute here_.

That was the look Harry Potter gave to his sister as they sat in Lockhart's office, serving their detention for flying a flying car to school rather than taking the train by helping Professor Lockhart answer his fan mail. She nodded and rolled her eyes at the professor, who was admiring a picture of himself that a fan had sent to him, hoping it would be returned with an autograph. "Fame is a fickle friend- never forget that."

"Right you are, Professor," Sandy muttered sarcastically under her breath.

Suddenly, a hissing voice spoke.

"_Let me rip you… let me kill you!_"

Glancing at her brother, she saw by the surprised look on his face that he had heard it as well. "Professor?" Harry said timidly. "Did you hear that?"

"Hear what?" Lockhart asked, finally looking up from his picture.

"That voice," Sandy replied. "Speaking…"

"There was no voice," Professor Lockhart told her, looking at both of the twins oddly. "Perhaps you're both just getting a bit overtired… and no wonder, it's a quarter past eleven! We'd best get you two off to bed! Wouldn't want Filch to catch you wandering around the castle late at night, eh?"

As soon as the twins were out of earshot of his office, Harry turned to his sister and hissed, "What d'you reckon that was, Sandy?"

"I dunno," she said, sounding frightened. "Lockhart didn't hear it, he didn't even look the least bit scared. I know I'm terrified…" She drifted a bit closer to her twin as they were walking in the dim light of the nighttime castle.

They continued to walk in silence, until a hand grabbed Sandy on the shoulder.

She shrieked and spun around, pulling out her wand to face her attacker. "Relax, Sandy!" cried Ron, holding up his hands in defense and looking alarmed. "It's only me!"

"Oh," she said, breathing heavily and putting her wand away. "Sorry, Ron, I'm just really spooked…"

"What's gotten into you?" he asked, so Harry told him what had just happened.

"Are you sure Lockhart wasn't just lying?" Ron asked when Harry had finished speaking.

"There's no way that old fool could lie that well," Sandy snorted. "No, no… Harry and I are definitely going off our rockers…"

TIBTOTIBTOTIBTO

"Girl Potter has got the Quaffle and she's rocketing toward the goal posts, Flint tries to block it- GRYFFINDOR SCORES! Magnificent shot by Girl Potter, what an excellent Chaser that girl is, and she's getting rather attractive too-"

"Jordan!" growled McGonagall.

"Right, Professor, sorry," Lee Jordan said sheepishly, before continuing on with the commentary of the match.

Turning sharply, Sandy zoomed toward the middle of the pitch, where one of the Slytherin Chasers had possession of the Quaffle. She was gaining on him, and she was almost right beside him, close enough to have a chance of stealing the Quaffle when-

"-oh and nice dodge by Girl Potter, nearly had her head taken off by the Bludger there. Speaking of the Potter players, Boy Potter hasn't had much action this game, he hasn't seemed to be able to spot the Snitch just yet-"

Sandy had had to take a sharp dive to avoid being hit in the head by a Bludger. "Bollocks," she muttered under her breath, looking up to spot the Slytherin Chaser again. No need, for Alicia Spinnet had the Quaffle. Sandy raced to join her, should she need to pass the Quaffle to her, when-

"Oh, Merlin," Ron moaned in the stands, turning very white. "That's the second time in a row she's had to dodge that Bludger!"

Sandy had had to perform a smooth barrel roll to avoid being hit by the Bludger in her side this time.

"Relax, Ronald," Hermione said, though she bit her lip nervously. "I'm sure it's just a coincidence."

"I dunno, Hermione," he said. "This doesn't look right to me."

And it wasn't quite right. Though Fred Weasley had hit the Bludger in the complete opposite direction of Sandy, it merely came rocketing back toward her. "What do I do?" she moaned, eyeing the black ball zooming toward her.

"Fly away!" Fred urged her, taking aim with his bat once more.

And so she flew, zooming all around the Quidditch pitch in an effort to ditch the Bludger, but it followed her no matter what she did. As she zoomed past Harry, he tried to ask her what was wrong, but there was simply no time for her to reply.

"Somebody's fixed that Bludger!" Ron cried, having lost all color in his face at this point. He wrung his hands together nervously. "Come on, Sandy… you can do it…"

In the air, Sandy glanced back to check the distance between her and the rogue Bludger.

Big mistake.

"Going somewhere, Potter?"

Draco Malfoy purposefully planted himself in her path, and she was too close to change direction. She skidded to a stop to avoid hitting him and potentially falling off her broom, and-

_Bam!_

With a sickening crack, the Bludger hit her in the head.

It took a moment for the crowd to realize what was happening, as Harry had just caught the Snitch and nearly everyone was cheering. However, Fred Weasley, who had been making sure to keep an eye on the Bludger situation, managed to catch Sandy just a few feet before she hit the ground. He landed and laid her gently on the ground.

Harry was on the ground and at his sister's side in a flash. "What happened?" he panted.

"The Bludger- it hit her in the head," said Ron, who had seemingly appeared out of nowhere. Hermione appeared a second later, her eyes filling with tears. Ron knelt down on the ground next to Sandy and took her hand, looking ghostly white.

"She's bleeding," Fred said, pointing to a pool of blood that was forming around her head. Though no one believed it possible, Ron turned even whiter.

"You better get her up to the Hospital Wing," said Hermione, her voice quavering.

Silently, Ron picked her up and carried her in his arms, Harry and Hermione on either side of him.

When Sandy woke up the next day, she found that her head was still throbbing a bit, but otherwise, she felt perfectly fine. She struggled to sit up in bed and rubbed her eyes. When her vision cleared, she was startled to find Harry, Ron, and Hermione asleep in chairs next to her bed. "Harry," she hissed, shaking her twin awake, for he was the closest to her. "What're you all doing here? Why aren't you in the dormitories?"

His green eyes brightened when he saw that she was awake. "Oh thank Merlin you're okay!" he said, smiling broadly. "We were all so worried. Madam Pomfrey _tried_ to make us go sleep in our dormitories, except for me of course, since I'm family, but I think she finally cracked when Hermione burst into tears."

"_Tears?_" Sandy asked, incredulously. "Hermione?"

As if the sound of her name had roused her from her slumber, Hermione's brown eyes opened. "You're okay!" she squealed, throwing her arms around her best friend. "I was so scared when I saw that Bludger hit you, I thought you'd died! And then you almost fell to the ground, but luckily Fred caught you right before you did!"

"Hermione, tone it down a bit," Sandy chucked, hugging her best friend tightly. "You're squealing into my ear. And besides, you're going to wake Ron."

"Too late," said a voice.

Hermione pulled away from Sandy, revealing Ron's gray eyes wide open and shining with relief, a broad smile spread across his face. "You're okay," he said, sounding ecstatic.

"Well, I've got a bit of a headache," she said, pointing to where she could feel the bandages wrapped around her head. "But otherwise, I'm completely and totally find. You three needn't have worried."

"Oh shut it," Harry said good-naturedly, hugging his sister. "Just enjoy it while you can. Soon things will be back to normal. Hermione will be bossy, Ron will be a bit of an idiot, and I… I'll be your brother. Just like always."

TIBTOTIBTOTIBTO

"Harry's a Parseltongue!"

Hermione and Sandy both sat on Hermione's bed, the curtains of the four poster drawn, talking in hushed tones so as not to wake their other roommates. "A what?" Sandy said, looking uncertainly at her.

"Oh, honestly, I expect more out of you than those two," Hermione said, rolling her eyes. "A Parseltongue is someone who can speak to snakes. At the Dueling Club meeting this evening, when Malfoy conjured up that snake, Harry spoke Parselmouth- that's snake language- to it."

"This is explains so much!" she hissed, her eyes widening. "The summer before we came here, we went to the zoo with our aunt, uncle and cousin for our cousin's birthday. We were in the reptile house, and this snake told us that it had never been to Brazil before… and then the glass vanished… anyway, Justin's just lucky that Harry told the snake to back off. It looked just about ready to attack."

"Is that what Harry said to it then?" she asked. "'Cause you know, no one else can understand you. You both can speak Parselmouth then?" At this, Sandy nodded. "This doesn't look good, Sandy, this doesn't look good at all…"

"Why not?" she asked sharply. "What's so wrong with being able to talk to snakes? It's not like we do anything _evil_ with the ability."

"Well… Salazar Slytherin could talk to snakes," Hermione explained. "That's why the symbol of Slytherin house is a snake, Sandy. It's an ability that's often associate with Dark magic."

"Oh," Sandy said simply. After a few moments, she said, "I think I'm going to bed, Hermione. I'm rather sleepy, after all this excitement."

"Wait!" Hermione said sharply, grabbing Sandy's shoulder. Allowing a small smile to spread across her face, she said, "You know Ron fancies you, don't you? He nearly had a break down after you got hit with that Bludger, he was so worried."

"Yeah, I know," Sandy said, grinning and blushing faintly in the darkness of the dormitory. "He told me at the end of last year."

"And you didn't tell me!" she cried. "Sandy Lily Potter, I am supposed to be your best friend! We do not keep secrets from each other!" She whacked the raven haired girl over the head with a pillow.

"Fine, fine," Sandy said, giggling madly. "I'm sorry! I won't keep any more secrets!" Once she had caught her breath again, she said, "I told him to hold off on a relationship. I said we're too young, and Harry and I attract too much trouble. I said to wait."

"D'you think he will?"

"I really hope so, 'Mione."

TIBTOTIBTOTIBTO

When Harry and Ron descended into the Gryffindor common room on Christmas morning, they were surprised to see that only Hermione was waiting for them. "Where's Sandy?" Ron asked, looking wistfully up at the second year girls' dormitory.

"She's sick," Hermione replied, frowning. "Woke up this morning and ran to the loo, vomiting something awful."

"Oh, no," Harry moaned, looking distressed. "That's awful."

"She sent me down here to meet the two of you," Hermione explained. "She said she didn't want us waiting around on her all day."

However, Ron had a look of determination on his face. "I don't _care_ what she wants, we're not leaving her all by herself on Christmas," he said. "Why don't you two go down to the Great Hall and get some food? I'm sure she won't want to eat anyway, if she's throwing up. I'll keep her some company until you all get back."

"All right, mate," Harry said. "If you're sure."

"I'll go get her," Hermione said, getting up from her seated position. "You can't get into our dormitory, Ron."

Ten minutes later, Harry and Hermione had just exited via the portrait hole, and Ron and Sandy were alone together in the common room. Sandy was occupying her favorite squishy armchair by the fire, covered by about five warm blankets that Ron had gotten for her from his bed. "You comfy there, Sandy?" he asked, cocking his head at her from the chair next to hers. "You still look awfully pale."

"I'm fine, thanks, Ron," she croaked. She did look rather sick- she was pale, and Ron was fairly sure she was sweating, despite her constant complaints of being cold.

"Why don't we take you to the Hospital Wing? Madam Pomfrey could have you sorted out in a minute," he suggested.

"Hermione already suggested that," she replied. "Madam Pomfrey went home to visit her family. She's only to be brought back if it's an absolute emergency. As this is just a stomach virus and a fever, I don't think this warrants interrupting her vacation."

"If you say so," he said doubtfully. "Did you get any good presents then?"

"Yes," she said, smiling. "Your mum knit me another sweater and sent me some more homemade fudge, Hagrid gave me a _ton_ of Cauldron Cakes, since he knows I love those… what else… 'Mione bought me this hokey friendship necklace, see?" She pulled a necklace out of her cloak, revealing it to be half of a heart. It had the word "best" engraved on it. "She has the other half that says 'friends' on it… it's a Muggle sort of thing, but she got some sort of charm on it so that if I tap my wand to my half… hers lights up, and she knows I need her. It's awfully corny, but really sweet."

"Anything else?" Ron prompted her, hoping that she would talk about his present next.

"Oh, yes!" she said. "My aunt and uncle sent me a bobby pin… not that that really counts as a present, but the fact that they even thought of me counts for something, I suppose… Harry gave me a book called _A History of Chasers: Those Who Chased and Those Who Were Chased_… Colin Creevey sent me a heart shaped box of chocolates."

Ron frowned. "Colin? You mean that first year that's been following you and Harry around, taking all those pictures?"

She nodded, grimacing. "Yeah, he's awfully annoying but Harry reckons he's taken a fancy to me. I reckon he'd fancy Harry as well, if they weren't both blokes…"

"Is that all you got?" he asked, feeling his heart sink. He began to wonder if his present hadn't made it to her somehow. Or perhaps she didn't like it at all, and she was hoping to avoid hurting his feelings?

"And your present, of course!" she said, looking at him as though he were off his rocker. "It was brilliant, Ron! I loved it!" She beamed at him brightly. He had given her a handsome, hand-bound journal, as she had been complaining about running out of room in her current one. He had walked in on her scribbling away in it on numerous occasions, and he knew how much keeping track of her memories meant to her.

"I had a lot of help from Hagrid," he admitted, shrugging and turning bright red. "He gave me all the materials I needed, and he showed me how to bind it."

"You bound it yourself?" she said, her green eyes widening as he nodded. "Oh, Ron… thank you."

"Are we interrupting something?" asked Hermione, as she and Harry clambered back in through the portrait hole. She struggled to keep a devilish grin off her face as Sandy glared at her.

"No, not at all," Ron, who was now the exact same shade of red as a tomato, said. "We were just discussing our Christmas presents."

Harry and Hermione seated themselves as close to their friends as possible. "Well, though it _is_ Christmas Day, I hope you all haven't forgotten that we have business to attend to," Hermione said, using the tone of voice that she usually reserved for reminding them to do their homework.

"Of _course_ we haven't forgotten," Sandy said, rolling her eyes at her best friend. "You may be brilliant, Hermione, but that doesn't mean we're all idiots."

"Are we still going through with this today then?" Harry said. "With Sandy sick?"

"Oh, good point, mate," Ron said, glancing at her. "I dunno…"

"Yes, our plan did involve _four_ Slytherins… you went to all that trouble to get some of Pansy's hair during Potions class!" Hermione said, looking stressed out.

"Relax, 'Mione," Sandy told her gently. "Look, I'm feeling pretty under the weather. I'm not going to be able to go tonight. But," she held up her hand as Harry opened his mouth as if to speak, "you guys should still go. It's important that we get that information as soon as possible- before any more Muggleborns are attacked."

"But Sandy-!" protested Ron.

"I don't want any arguments," she snapped, looking at him sharply.

Ron opened his mouth as if to do just that, but it was Harry who cut him off this time. "Don't, mate," he warned him. "I know that tone. Recognize defeat, and accept it."

"Alright," Hermione said. "So I guess it's just the three of us tonight then."

Sandy nodded. "Just don't let me down, eh?"

"We won't," her brother told her, squeezing her shoulder tightly. "Are you feeling well enough for a game of wizard's chess?"

TIBTOTIBTOTIBTO

"Oh no!"

Sandy moaned and grasped her best friend's Petrified hand, taking a seat next to Hermione's bed in the Hospital Wing. Ron put a comforting hand on her shoulder, but said nothing- he didn't think he could put a positive spin on this situation. Harry simply looked stricken, his green eyes wide with fright and worry. "What're we going to do?" Harry groaned, after what felt like ages of a stunned silence between the three friends.

"I dunno," Ron said, shrugging. "I bet you anything Hermione was close to figuring it out. She was spending all her time in the library…"

"That's it!" Sandy cried, releasing Hermione's hand and freeing herself from Ron's grasp. "I'll see you two at dinner!"

She dashed out of the Hospital Wing, leaving Harry and Ron very confused in her wake. "What, is she going to camp out in there now?"

TIBTOTIBTOTIBTO

"_Harry, behind you!_"

Sandy shrieked loudly in the chamber, her green eyes wild with fright. Harry whipped around, drawing Gryffindor's sword just in the nick of time. The basilisk was right behind him. Without thinking, without hesitating, he plunged the sword upward into the roof the basilisk's mouth, and the beast gave a dying shriek. But as it lurched forward, one of its large, pointed fangs lodged itself in Harry's arm. With a cry of pain, he pulled the sword of the snake's mouth and hobbled in the general direction of his twin. "Harry!" she said, rushing to his side. She slung his good arm around her neck and helped him walk back toward Ginny, who was still deadly pale.

"That's right, Harry Potter," said Riddle dangerously. "You're going to die. And after you're nothing more than a corpse, I'm going to kill Ginny here, and make your dear old sister watch. And then, I'll kill your sister… and you won't be here to protect her anymore…"

The twins slumped to the floor together, and Harry's grip on his sister tightened as he felt his vision going slightly black. Mustering up what was left of his strength, he leaned against his sister and, using his good arm, wrenched the basilisk fang out of his wounded one. Suddenly, Fawkes reappeared, landing next to Harry. "Oh, Fawkes," Sandy muttered, patting the phoenix on the head gently. "You've been a big help."

Fawkes looked at her sadly, then he turned his gaze to her twin. Lowering his head, he let out two gigantic, pearly tears, which landed on Harry's wounded arm. Sandy watched, her mouth forming an 'o', as her brother's arm was healed before her very eyes.

"Healing powers," Riddle muttered, watching as Harry sat up of his own accord and steadily got his color back. "How could I forget? Nevertheless, I'm feeling more than strong enough now to kill both of you… yes, you shall not leave this chamber, not alive…"

Looking around the chamber for some sort of escape, Sandy's eyes landed on the basilisk fang her brother had extracted from his own arm. Riddle seemed to be delving into a prepared monologue, so she nudged her brother as inconspicuously as possible, flicking her eyes at the fang when he looked at her questioningly. He handed to her, but Riddle, absorbed in his own thoughts, didn't notice. Sandy leaned forward, pulled the diary from Ginny's clutches.

This, Riddle did notice.

"What are you doing?" he asked sharply.

She laid the diary open on the ground, and, raising the basilisk fang high above her head, she said, "Goodbye, Tom."

TIBTOTIBTOTIBTO

"Master has given Dobby socks!"

The house elf looked nearly catatonic with glee as he dropped the diary on the ground, holding up two mismatching socks- one black (that one was Harry's), one white (that one was Sandy's). "What?" Lucius Malfoy said, whipping around, looking furious. His eyes widened at the sight of the socks in Dobby's hands. "You've freed my servant! How dare you-!" He drew his wand, and the twins were sure he was going to curse them, but Dobby snapped his fingers, and Lucius flew back several feet.

"You shall not harm the Potters," Dobby decreed, looking angry. "The Potters is good and noble! You shall not lay a single hand on their generous heads!"

Still furious and practically growling, Lucius stormed off.

"Thanks, Dobby," Sandy said, bending down so that she was at eye level with the elf.

"Dobby is thanking _you_, Sandy Potter," he said, his eyes shining. "How can Dobby ever repays you?"

"Just don't sic anymore Bludgers on my sister, alright, Dobby?" Harry said, grinning. "That's how you can repay _both_ of us."

TIBTOTIBTOTIBTO

Checking to make sure that Harry and Hermione were both asleep, Ron cleared his throat. "Er, Sandy? Can I ask you something?"

"Sure, Ron," she chirped. She closed her journal, the one Ron had made for her for Christmas; he guessed that she had been rereading something she had written.

"Do you still fancy me?" he asked. "I know you said your feelings wouldn't change at the end of last year, but you haven't really acted like it all year…"

She gave him a small smile. "Yes, Ron," she replied. "I do still fancy you. In fact, I think I fancy you rather more now than I did at the end of last year."

"Y-you do?" he stammered, turning bright red as he did so often in her presence. "Then why…?"

"Oh, don't you see, Ronald?" she said. "I told you to hold off on a relationship, and I'm trying to keep our friendship the way it was _before_ we admitted we had feelings for each other. That can't exactly happen if we're acting like a couple left and right."

"I suppose you're right," he sighed, running a hand through his flaming red hair. "But… how will I know that you still fancy me? So I don't have to just wonder all the time?"

"Oh, Ron," she said brightly, "you'll just know." And leaning across the compartment, she kissed him on the cheek, causing him to turn bright red once again.

And just like that, another year had gone.


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N: I still own nothing… Please leave a review! They make me happy! **

Chapter 3: Year the Third

Having no desire to sit by herself on the tumultuous ride that was the Knight Bus, Sandy seated herself next to her brother Harry on his bed, watching with a mix of interest and trepidation as the purple triple decker bus rocketed through the streets almost dangerously. Looking at the front page of the newspaper Stan was reading, she asked, "Who's that?" She pointed at the wild looking man in the picture.

"That's Sirius Black," he replied, looking at her as though she were mad over the top of his newspaper. "Mad, that one is. He escaped from Azkaban. It's never been done before."

"What's he in Azkaban for?" Harry asked, after exchanging a glance with Sandy that let him know that she, too, remembered hearing Black's name on the Muggle news not that long ago.

"He was a big supporter of He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named," replied Stan, now turning his gaze on Harry. "After 'Arry an' Sandy Potter defeated him, he went mad. Killed thirteen people with one curse in broad daylight. They locked him up in Azkaban after that." Cocking his head at the twins, he asked, "Er… what did you say your names were again?"

"Neville Longbottom," Harry answered quickly, then felt like smacking himself upside the head. He and Sandy looked too much alike for them not to be related- he should've made up a name entirely.

"I'm his cousin, Jenny," Sandy added, praying feebly that word of their lies never made it back to Neville or his family.

"Right," said Stan, not looking entirely convinced. However, he didn't press the matter further.

About an hour later, when all other passengers had gotten off the Knight Bus, he asked them, "Where are you two goin' then?"

"The Leaky Cauldron," Sandy said quickly, before Harry could fumble another reply. Her twin looked at her gratefully.

The Knight Bus took off with a bang, the force of it throwing both twins flat on their backs onto the bed. "I hope we get there quickly…" Harry muttered so that only Sandy could hear.

"Don't complain, it's better than Privet Drive," she advised him.

"I'll stop complaining once I know we haven't been expelled," he shot back. "We blew up our aunt…"

"Well, she deserved it… that fat bitch…"

TIBTOTIBTOTIBTO

"We've got to find them, Hermione."

Ron anxiously craned his neck above the other people seated outside Florean Fortescue's Ice Cream Parlor, hoping to spot the twins among the throngs of people roaming Diagon Alley. "Relax, Ronald," Hermione told him, rolling her eyes at the redhead. "They're staying at the Leaky Cauldron, we'll see them tonight at any rate…"

"Well, yes, but don't you want to see them now?" he pressed, halfway standing in his seat.

Grinning to herself, she said, "_You_ just want to see _Sandy_."

He glared at her. "Oh shut up, Hermione. You don't know what you're on about."

"Oh, please, Ronald," she huffed. "As if I couldn't have figured it out for myself. Besides, she _told_ me." At his appalled look, she said, "She was very happy about it, you know. You don't need to go making an arse of yourself because you wanted her to keep it a secret from me, her _best_ friend."

"Alright," he said, mollified. Then his face brightened, and he beamed. "Look, there they are!" He pointed to a raven-haired boy and girl walking side by side, coming from the direction of Eyelops Owl Emporium. "SANDY! HARRY!"

"Hush, Ronald," she scolded, turning bright red as several witches and wizards turned to glare at them. "You're making a scene."

He took no notice, however, as his bellowing had done the job. The Potter twins hurried over to them, clutching new cages for Thunder and Hedwig. "Ron! Hermione!" Sandy said happily, hugging each of them in turn. "It's so good to see you!" She plopped herself down in a seat next to Ron.

"We were wondering when we were going to run into you," Harry said, sitting down next to Hermione and hugging her. Turning to Ron, he asked, "How was Egypt, mate?"

"It was bloody brilliant," the ginger grinned. "Bloody hot as well. Those ancient Egyptian wizards did some interesting stuff, I'll tell you…"

Sandy leaned back into her chair, basking in the sunlight and the presence of her twin brother and her very best friends, back together at long last…

TIBTOTIBTOTIBTO

"I'll go get your tonic, Ron, relax."

Harry descended the stairs into the lobby of the Leaky Cauldron only to bump into his twin. He opened his mouth to apologize, but she held a single finger up to her lips, shushing him. "Listen," she hissed quietly.

Listening intently, he could hear the sounds of Mr. and Mrs. Weasley bickering. "They deserve to know! They're not babies, Molly! And they deserve to know what they're up against!" said Mr. Weasley.

"Fudge didn't tell them!" replied the redheaded woman shrilly. "And they may not be babies, but they're still _children_, Arthur! Imagine, just think for a moment, about what it would do them, to their _happiness_, if they knew that Sirius Black, the criminal everyone is looking for, escaped from Azkaban to kill _them_! He's mad enough to think that Sandy is dead, he thinks only Harry is alive, that Voldemort was partially successful… he's completely off his rocker! You cannot tell them, Arthur! _They're too young!_"

Harry quickly and stealthily grabbed Ron's rat tonic before grabbing his twin's hand and pulling her up the stairs to the next landing. "What d'you reckon?" he said quietly, looking grim.

"I dunno," she replied honestly, shrugging. "I guess that explains why Fudge didn't punish us, eh? He was just happy that we were still alive and Black hadn't gotten to us."

"I think…" Harry said slowly, "I think that perhaps we should be a bit more careful this year."

"Harry, don't be daft," she told him. "We're always careful. We never _look_ for danger or trouble. They always find us. When we're babies, Voldemort comes to kill us. Then when we're eleven, he comes to Hogwarts to get the Sorcerer's Stone. Then last year, the Chamber of Secrets is reopened. In short, Harry- we're doomed."

TIBTOTIBTOTIBTO

Sandy awoke in a cold sweat, panting and frightened. Unwilling to open her eyes just yet, she realized she was lying on a seat on the Hogwarts Express, her head in someone's lap. That someone was also stroking her hair rather gently. Slowly, she opened her eyes, blinking rapidly to clear her vision. "She's awake," said a voice. It was Hermione. "Are you alright?"

Her best friend was kneeling on the ground in front of her so that they were at eye level.

"I suppose so," Sandy replied thickly. "Who screamed?"

"No one screamed, Sandy," said someone else above her. It was Ron. She realized that her head on was on his lap, and he was the one stroking her hair. She began to struggle to sit up, and he helped her, gripping her arm and allowing her to lean against him even when she was upright.

"Thanks," she said, looking at him gratefully.

"You gave us quite a turn," he said, looking quite pale. She grimaced and looked across the compartment and found her twin looking back at her.

"I passed out too," he said, answering the question she hadn't yet voiced. "I woke up just before you did. Don't worry, I heard the screaming too. You aren't going mad." She smiled at him gratefully, appreciating once more that Harry was at times the only one who fully understood the things she went through, because he went through them as well.

Professor Lupin, who had been asleep before, swept into the compartment. He handed everyone a piece of chocolate. "Here, eat this," he said. "Should have you feeling better in a few minutes' time."

"Professor, what were those… things?" Sandy asked.

"Dementors," he replied, frowning. "They guard Azkaban. They were probably searching the train for Sirius Black… though I don't understand what made them believe they had permission to do that. Dumbledore made it absolutely clear… well, no matter. We'll have this sorted out once we get to the castle. Eat up. I'm going to go have a word with the conductor."

As he left, Sandy bit into the chunk of chocolate he had given her, and she immediately felt some of the warmth return to her body. Taking her lead, Harry followed suit. Resuming her seat next to Harry, Hermione worriedly asked, "So you two really are alright, then? We were all really worried…"

"Why?" Harry asked sharply. "Didn't anyone else… you know, pass out?"

"No," Ron replied hesitantly. "Just you two. And… er, you didn't _just_ pass out. You both looked like you were having a seizure or something."

The twins exchanged worried glances with each other, but said nothing further.

_What was happening to them?_

TIBTOTIBTOTIBTO

"That looked like bloody brilliant fun, Harry!"

Sandy beamed and rushed to her twin as soon as he slid of Buckbeak's back. "Can I have a go, Hagrid?" she asked eagerly.

"I'm 'fraid not, Sandy. The other kids migh' be jealous," he said, chuckling.

Looking disappointed, she nodded. Turning to the hippogriff, she bowed low, maintaining steady eye contact. Buckbeak eyed her shrewdly, before bending his scaly knees. She approached him and petted his beak gently. "He's beautiful, Hagrid."

"Why don' you two go an' join Ron an' Hermione?" he suggested, pointing to where their friends were practicing with a brown hippogriff. "We should share Buckbeak here. Maybe I'll let Malfoy an' them practice on 'im."

"If you're sure," Harry said, eyeing Draco apprehensively, but he and Sandy joined Ron and Hermione with the brown hippogriff.

After they both bowed to it and received bows in return, the twins began to stroke the creature as well. "They're gorgeous creatures," Hermione said admiringly, examining every part of the animal she could see.

"What was riding on one like, Harry?" Ron asked, sounding curious. He looked at his best mate with wide eyes.

"It was brilliant," he said. "I prefer a broom to be honest… but still… brilliant."

TIBTOTIBTOTIBTO

"Damn it!"

Harry had taken to the air again shortly after Hermione had put the charm to keep the rain away on his glasses, but though his vision had greatly improved, it didn't change the fact that it was incredibly difficult to fly in this weather, Nimbus Two Thousand or not. Even if he did spot the Snitch, it would be incredibly hard to catch it with the rain and the wind tossing him this way and that.

Meanwhile, Sandy was having a hard time keeping her hands on the Quaffle, as slippery as it was with all the rain. Zooming toward the goal posts, she chucked it toward one, but lost her grip on it just as she released it, resulting in a shot that was way off mark. She cursed under the breath, flying off in the other direction as best she could, given that it was against the rain.

Down in the stands, Hermione and Ron were trying to make out what was going on in the sky. "Can you see a thing?" Hermione asked tentatively, her vision partially obscured by her hood.

"No," he admitted, squinting into the sky against the rain despite himself. "For all I can see, all the players could've been replaced by monkeys by now and I wouldn't be able to tell the difference." Suddenly, a great chill fell over the stands, which was saying something considering how cold it had already been. "Does it suddenly feel a lot colder to you?"

"Yes," replied Hermione, whose teeth had begun chattering. "Why do you think that is?"

There was no real need for him to reply, as they suddenly spotted several dark figures approaching the Quidditch pitch rapidly, gliding in mid-air. "Dementors," he said, pointing a shaking figure at them. Cheers erupted from the Hufflepuff section of the stands, as it slowly became apparent that Cedric had caught the Snitch.

It was only a moment before everyone saw two bodies falling from the sky…

When Harry opened his eyes, he was in the Hospital Wing. Ignoring the aches and pains all over his body, he asked thickly, "Where's my sister?"

"Relax, mate," said Fred Weasley, who, despite his words, was looking rather relieved that Harry was awake. "She's right here." The redhead gestured to the bed to Harry's left.

Harry fumbled for his glasses, and, putting them on, he saw that Sandy was indeed in a bed to his left, still knocked out. "Is she okay?" he asked urgently. "Why isn't she awake yet?"

"Madam Pomfrey says she'll be okay," George told him, though he was frowning as he glanced at Sandy. "She fell from a greater height than you did, since you had started to dive to chase the Snitch… she should wake up soon though."

Harry took in the scene around him. Fred, George, and the rest of the Gryffindor Quidditch team were standing at the foot of his bed, looking muddy and exhausted, but relieved that he was okay. Ron and Hermione were seated in chairs between his bed and Sandy's. Hermione was flashing him a watery smile, but Ron was looking pale and grim, still glancing back at Sandy every few moments, as if to see if she had woken up yet. "Dumbledore was furious," Hermione finally said, breaking the silence. "I've never seen him so angry… the dementors aren't supposed to come on school grounds… it was scary, Harry…"

"No, what was scary was watching you and your sister fall to the ground," Ron croaked out, sending another anxious look Sandy's way.

Sucking in a deep breath, Harry said, "Ron, it'll be okay. She'll pull through; I know my sister, she's a fighter."

Ron looked surprised that Harry was comforting him when he was the one who had just fallen to his almost certain death, but he looked grateful nonetheless. "Thanks, mate…" he said weakly.

"What happened to our brooms?" Harry asked, realizing that both his broom and his sister's broom were missing. Biting her lip, Hermione producing from behind her a pile of wood scraps that was roughly equivalent to two broomsticks.

"Your broomsticks flew into the Whomping Willow after you fell off…" Ron informed him. "And, well, you that tree…"

"Oh, no," Harry murmured. "They can't be repaired? Sandy's was, when that Bludger took the tip of hers off first year…"

"These are beyond repair, Harry," Hermione told him sadly. "I'm so sorry…"

TIBTOTIBTOTIBTO

"_What_ are you two doing here?"

Hermione led the four of them to a secluded spot near the Shrieking Shack so that she could ensure their conversation wouldn't be overheard. Sandy quickly explained to her about the Marauder's Map Fred and George had given them and how they had used a passage that led from the castle to the Honeyduke's cellar. "Brilliant!" cried Ron, beaming happily at the twins.

"No, it's dangerous!" hissed Hermione. "You should really give that to McGonagall, you know. Sirius Black could use that passageway just as well as you can-"

"Hermione," Sandy said reasonably, and Harry breathed a sigh of relief, recognizing that tone of voice. It was times like this he and Ron were especially glad they had Sandy around; often, she was the only one who could defeat Hermione's logical arguments with an equally logical argument of her own. "The owners of Honeyduke's live at the shop. They'd hear if there was a break-in. And Filch knows about all the other _useable_ passageways- it's fine."

"Fine," Hermione huffed. "You know I won't turn you in. But- oh, just be careful!"

"They will be, Hermione," Ron said, rolling his eyes. "Come on, let's take them to the Three Broomsticks."

TIBTOTIBTOTIBTO

That night, Ron awoke from his dreams with a start. Wondering what had woken him up, he listened intently. Finally, he thought he detected noise coming from the common room. Grabbing his wand and holding it aloft as he descended the stairs, he found the source of the noise. Sandy was sitting in front of the fire, holding her knees into her chest, making small, sad noises every few minutes. "Sandy?" he said, lowering his wand. "What's wrong?"

She turned to him, and he saw that her face and her emerald green eyes were shining with tears. His heart ached. "He was their friend…"

"Oh, Sandy," he sighed, coming to sit down next to her. She leaned against him, burying her head in his chest. He hesitantly wrapped his arms around her, half expecting her to push away, but she buried her face further into him. "It's okay…" he muttered.

After a few moments, she sat up, still allowing him to keep his arms around her. "This is why your dad warned Harry and me not to go looking for Black…" she said. "He thought we'd want revenge." When Ron was silent, she went on, "Well, he was right to warn us. I _want_ revenge. I'm so bloody angry. Black is vile, cruel, filthy, disloyal vermin!" Ron saw a fire and an anger in her eyes that he had never seen before.

"Sandy, please don't go looking for him," he begged. "Please."

"And why shouldn't I?" she snapped, standing up and starting to pace around the room. "He got my parents killed… they trusted him, he was their _friend_… and he betrayed them! He deserved to be killed, and I want to be the one to do it!"

"W-what about Harry?" Ron said, looking for any reason to give her to stay away from Black. "You care about him, don't you?"

"Of course I do! He wants this too, and you know it!"

After a moment-

"What about me?" he asked softly, looking up at her. "Sandy, I dunno what I'd do if you and Harry died. Harry's my best mate… and you're… you're something very special to me. And not just me, what about Hermione? You're _her_ best mate, and so is Harry… you can't do that to her, can you?"

Sandy looked numb as she sat down next to him once more. "You're right," she sighed wearily. "You're right. I couldn't do that to Hermione. And I couldn't that to you."

TIBTOTIBTOTIBTO

"Ron! Thank Merlin you're okay!"

Ron found himself being consumed by a wave of jet black hair as Sandy threw herself at him, her hug nearly knocking him down to the ground. "Relax," he said softly, putting his arms around her. "You're going to bowl me over."

All the Gryffindors were crowded anxiously in the common room, waiting while Professor McGonagall and Professor Dumbledore examined the third year boys' dormitory. "What happened?" Hermione asked anxiously, looking from Harry to Ron and then back to Harry again.

"Well, I was sleeping, and then I heard this slashing noise that woke me up," said Ron. "And Sirius Black was standing over my bed, holding a knife. He had slashed my curtains! I screamed when I saw, and that woke everyone else up. He took off."

"What I don't understand," said Harry, making sure to keep his voice low so that he couldn't be overheard, "is why he took off. I mean, you were unarmed and asleep. Why didn't he just kill you, if he was really looking for me?"

Ron shrugged. "I dunno, mate. You got me there. Maybe he figured he wouldn't have a chance of escaping once I'd screamed and woken everyone else up…"

"Oh, who cares why he didn't kill either of you?" Sandy cried, throwing her arms in the air. "I'm just glad you're both okay!" She threw her arms around both the boys, pulling them in for the group hug. Hermione scowled at being left out, but Sandy looked back at her and said, "Don't be stupid, Hermione, get it in here." She pulled her into the pile, and Sirius Black was all but forgotten.

TIBTOTIBTOTIBTO

"Live with you?" Sandy and Harry echoed together, stopping dead in their tracks. They stared at Sirius incredulously, forgetting that they were supposed to be hurrying back to the castle to turn Wormtail in to the dementors.

"If you don't want to, it won't hurt my feelings," their godfather replied quickly, worrying that he had put them on the spot. "I understand, I haven't been there for the past twelve years, you hear all these stories, and then I suddenly turn up-"

"Sirius, shut up, would you?" Sandy said, cutting him off. "We'd _love_ to come live with you!"

He looked at her, beaming despite his disbelief. "Really? You wouldn't rather go back to your aunt and uncle's?"

"I'd rather insult a hippogriff," said Harry dryly.

"Well, if you lot don't mind," said Hermione, sounding a bit irritable, "we've got to get back up to the castle. Ron's leg's broken, we've got a murderer on our hands, not to mention a wrongfully convicted man on the run, as well as an attacked teacher. We don't have time to waste!"

"Right you are, Hermione," Sandy said, snapping out of her happy trance, in which she was envisioning a summer without the Dursleys- it was just her, her brother, and their godfather. "Let's go."

TIBTOTIBTOTIBTO

"Harry, are you sure you saw Dad?"

Harry and Sandy sat anxiously together on the front steps of Hagrid's hut, watching as the dementors swooped in on their other selves, Sirius, and Hermione. "Yes," he snapped irritably. "And if you'll recall, you saw him too."

"Well, yes," she admitted, taken aback by her brother's snappiness with her. "At least, I thought I did, when I first woke up."

"And who else would've been powerful enough to conjure up _two_ Patronuses at once? A doe and a stag, you _saw_ the doe and the stag!" Harry continued.

"Yes, Harry, I _know_ I saw the doe and the stag… But as for one wizard conjuring up two Patronuses at once… That's the thing, Harry, I'm not even sure that's possible…" she said, watching as the dementors continued to advanced on them…

"Where is he?" he said, wringing his hands nervously. "He should be here any minute, now… right now, he should be here!"

"No one's coming…" she said, looking horrified as a dementor swooped in on Sirius, preparing to deliver a deadly, soul-sucking kiss…

Without so much as exchanging a look, the twins set off at a run together, ignoring Hermione's shouts of protest from Hagrid's cabin. They reached the lake, Harry first with his sister standing directly behind him, and, summoning every single happy thought they could, they bellowed together, "EXPECTO PATRONUM!"

A brilliant silver stag erupted from the end of Harry's wand just as a shining silvery doe emerged from Sandy's. They charged at the dementors and illuminated the night sky, giving off the impression that it was day for the merest of moments.

They stared at the spot where their Patronuses had been before they disappeared for what felt like ages, dumbstruck. Finally, Sandy found her voice. She grabbed her brother's hand and said, "Come on, Harry, we've got to get out of here… we've got to free Sirius…"

TIBTOTIBTOTIBTO

"I don't know how I can ever thank you."

Sirius looked at the twins, an unfathomable expression plastered upon his face. Hermione had wisely decided to hang back a bit, sensing that this was a bit of a private moment. "Just don't get caught, okay?" Sandy told him, with a bit of a rueful grin. "After all our hard work, we don't want you chucked back in Azkaban."

"Will do," Sirius told her. Turning to Harry, he told him, "You look just like your dad, Harry. Except your eyes. You have Lily's eyes." Turning back to Sandy, he added, "And if James had been a girl, he would've looked like you. Except again, you have-"

"-our mum's eyes, I know," Sandy said, grinning. Glancing at her watch, she said, "Look, Sirius, you've got to go. They'll be realizing that you're gone any moment now…"

"Right," he said. "Well, I'll be in touch."

"Goodbye, Sirius," Harry said thickly, hugging his godfather.

"Goodbye, Harry," he replied, clearly taken aback by this sign of affection. Once Harry had released him, Sandy hugged him and bid him farewell.

The three friends stood side by side, watching Sirius and Buckbeak escape together on the cloudless, starry night. They stayed like that for a few moments, before-

"Oh no! We've got to get back! Dumbledore'll be locking the doors any minute now!"

TIBTOTIBTOTIBTO

"You fancy her, don't you?"

Harry and Sandy sat alone near midnight in the Gryffindor common room, playing a game of wizard's chess while everyone else was packing. They had both finished packing long ago, and they were now whiling away the time waiting for Ron and Hermione to be done by playing games. "What?" he asked thickly, looking at his sister and blinking at her dumbly.

"Hermione," she said knowingly. "You fancy her."

"Wha-?" he said stupidly. "How…? How did you know?"

"I'm your _twin_, Harry," she said, as if that explained everything. "I know you far too well for that to get past me. I've seen the way you look at her."

He was silent for a moment. Then he said quietly, "I think she's beautiful."

Sandy beamed at her. "Good," she said. "You may just be a bloke deserving of my best mate then."

He gaped at her. "Sandy, you're my sister! Not that I'm asking you to, but if you had to take sides, shouldn't you take mine?"

She scowled. "Harry, don't talk to me about taking sides between you and Hermione. Because the thought makes me sick. She's my best mate, and you're my brother. I would probably take your side, Harry, unless you were bang out of order. In which case, it's my job to beat some sense into you."

He grinned ruefully at her. "Alright, then. I'll keep that in mind." Hearing a throat clear, he turned around to see Ron standing a few feet behind him. "Well, I think Ron wants to chat with you. We can finish this game later, eh?"

"You just want to put off losing, Harry," she taunted him, but didn't protest his leaving otherwise. Harry patted Ron on the shoulder as he passed him, guessing that Ron was probably going to try to talk to Sandy about their relationship again, as he did at the end of every school year.

"Hullo, Sandy," Ron said, taking the seat that Harry had been in just a few moments ago.

"'Lo," she said cheerfully, clearing away the wizard's chess set. "You wanted to talk to me?"

"Er, yeah," he said rather nervously, starting to turn pink. "It's about… well, it's about us."

She look at him, her emerald green eyes not giving any hint of her thoughts away. "Go on then."

"When I admitted to you at the end of first year that I fancied you," he began slowly, "you told me to hold off on a real relationship. You said that we were too young."

"Yes, I remember."

"Well," he said. This was the moment he had been dreading. He had been rehearsing his words for a few days now, but he feared that now, at the moment of truth, he wouldn't have the spine to actually do it. He figured it would be best to just get it over with. "I was wondering if we're old enough now. For a relationship that is."

"Oh," she said slowly. Then, for a few moments, she said nothing. She seemed to be thinking. He bit his lip, sure she was going to refuse him completely. "Well, there are some people in our year who are already dating."

"Yeah," he agreed, thinking of Lavender who had gone on a date with Seamus to Hogsmeade once. It had been a complete disaster, but that needn't be mentioned at this particular moment. "So… is that a yes?"

"Oh, Ron," she said, looking upset. "I think we're old enough, but…"

His heart sank. "But what?"

"I don't think I'm quite ready," she said, shaking her head. "I'm so sorry, Ron."

"It's… it's okay," he said meekly, unable to think of anything else to say.

"It's just that," Sandy said, her eyebrows furrowing together the way they did when she was stressed, "when Sirius offered to let Harry and I live with him, I thought for a glorious twenty minutes or so, that my life was going to be very different from then on. And it may be a short time to think that, but it made a lot of difference to me… and that prophecy Trelawny made, during my exam… it's been bothering me… she said the Dark Lord would rise again. Oh, Ron, what if he comes back? What if Voldemort comes back? And it's my fault because Harry and I let Wormtail live?" She looked like she was on the verge of tears.

Ron softened. Whatever bitterness he had felt toward her for not being ready for a relationship melted in that instant. "Oh, Sandy," he said, gathering her into his arms. "It'll all be okay. I'm very sorry that Sirius' name hasn't been cleared, but at least he wasn't caught and kissed by the dementors. You, Harry, and Hermione saw to that- you all saved him! And as for You-Know-Who and Wormtail, don't worry about it. You're right, you've got too much on your mind right now to be worrying about me."

"So you're all right with this?" she asked him, looking up at him with shining green eyes.

"Yes," he nodded, and happy relief spilled all over her face.

"Oh, thank you, Ron!" she said, burying her face in his chest. "Thank you, thank you!"

"Don't worry about You-Know-Who," he said once more. "Trelawny's a fraud, I'm sure that was all just rubbish…"

How very wrong he was.


	4. Chapter 4

**A/N: Alas, I still do not own Harry Potter. Seriously, please review. The lack of review is making me sad. **

Chapter 4: Year the Fourth

"So what exactly happened between you and Ron at the end of term?"

Hermione lowered her voice to a whisper as she and Sandy helped Mrs. Weasley prepare dinner. There was no need, for the boys were playing Quiddtich outside and Mrs. Weasley was quite busy preparing food. "What d'you mean?" Sandy muttered, gathering some plates into her arms.

"Well, all I know is that he was planning to talk to you about starting a real relationship the night before we left Hogwarts," Hermione replied in hushed tones. "But then on the train, you two obviously weren't…"  
"Oh," Sandy said, comprehension dawning on her. "I told him I wasn't ready yet."

"You told him you weren't ready yet!" she yelped, dropping a glass, which shattered when it fell to the floor.

"Oh, Hermione, _honestly_-!" cried Mrs. Weasley, looking frustrated. "_Reparo!_"

After making her apologies, Hermione led Sandy outside so that they could set the tables for dinner. Making sure the boys were still engaged in their game of Quidditch, she said, "Sandy, you've liked him for _ages_! Where the bloody hell do you get off telling him you aren't ready for a relationship yet?"

"Language, 'Mione," Sandy said, scolding her mockingly. "Well, let's see. The only _real_ family Harry and I have got left just went on the run from the law _again_, just when we thought his name would be cleared and we'd be able to go and live with him instead of the Dursleys. Not to mention Trelawny making that prophecy about Wormtail returning to Voldemort- oh, _honestly_, Hermione- and Voldemort rising again… I've got too much on my mind right now to be worrying about a boyfriend on top of it all."

"If you say so," Hermione said, still sounding skeptical. "Ron would be really good for you, you know. I bet you'd hardly notice difference… well, perhaps the snogging, but otherwise…" She let her voice trail off, as she caught sight of the boys approaching them.

"Does this mean dinner is almost ready then?" Ron asked. "I'm bloody starving."

"Hardly, Ronald," Sandy teased, passing him and poking him in the stomach.

"That hurt!" he protested, but he flashed her a brilliant smile nonetheless. "You need some help those, love?" She turned slightly red, but nodded, allowing him to take a stack of the plates from her.

"Blimey," said Charlie, "I've never seen Ron _offer _to help with the house work before. You better keep an eye on your sister, Harry."

Harry chuckled and said, "She can look out for herself. If Ron crosses her, he'll be sorry."

"And why is that?" asked Bill, looking curiously at him.

"You've never seen one of her Jelly-Leg Jinxes, have you?" Harry said, smirking.

"Aaah, young love."

TIBTOTIBTOTIBTO

"Hold on, where's my wand?"

Sandy looked in her pockets frantically for her wand, but could not find it. "I've lost my wand!" she cried frantically, scanning the forest floor around her, but seeing no trace of it. She saw Harry, Hermione and Ron pause several yards ahead of her. Ron seemed to be saying something to them. Harry and Hermione continued onward, but Ron made his way back toward her.

"Sandy, listen to me," he said, taking her hand in his. "Don't worry about your wand right now, we've got to get out of here-"

"Ron, it's my wand!"

"Sandy, there are Death Eaters out there!" he said urgently, snapping around to face her. "D'you think they're gonna leave Hermione alone? _No!_ D'you think they're going to leave you and Harry alone? _No! _I can't let anything happen to you, so let's get the bloody hell out of here!" Ron was worried she would protest further, but she allowed him to pull her by the hand through the forest. In fact, she seemed to be grasping his hand tighter, and he squeezed her hand, hoping to reassure her.

They had just caught up to Harry and Hermione when-

"Did you hear something in the trees over there?" Harry said, looking frantically to his right.

Hermione opened her mouth to reply, but then-

"_MORSMORDE!" _

A bright green skull erupted in the otherwise starless, cloudless night, a snake emerging from it's mouth. Sandy gave a small sort of yelp that she managed to stifle soon after it left her mouth. "What's that?" she asked hoarsely, squeezing Ron's hand even tighter than before.

"That's the Dark Mark," said Hermione. "That's You-Know-Who's mark…"

TIBTOTIBTOTIBTO

"_Crucio!_"

Professor Moody held his wand pointed viciously at the spider, which was writhing in pain on his desk. Though the spider could not make noise, one could easily imagine the screams it would be producing if it could…

"Stop, stop it!" said Hermione shrilly, standing up at her desk. "Can't you see he's upset?" She gestured toward Neville, who had gone chalk white and who was clutching his desk so tightly that his knuckles were even whiter than his face.

Moody released the spider from his curse. Then he said, "Can anyone name the third Unforgiveable Curse?"

"The K-killing Curse," said Hermione, her voice wavering.

Moody nodding, then directed his wand toward the spider. "_Avada Kedavra!_"

There was a flash of brilliant green light, then the spider lay motionless, obviously dead, on the desk. Ron noticed that, next to him, Sandy had recoiled and begun shaking. Harry's mouth was a thin line that rivaled McGonagall's and his eyes were filled with horror. "Only two people have ever survived that curse," Moody continued. "And they're both sitting in this room."

Sandy made a small noise like a wounded animal, then she bolted and made for the door.

TIBTOTIBTOTIBTO

"Harry and Sandy Potter!"

Dumbledore read aloud the names on the piece of parchment in his hand, looking just as surprised as everyone else in the Great Hall. Both the twins seemed to have frozen in shock. Finally, Sandy managed to stand up from her seat, and, taking her brother's hand, she hissed, "Come on, Harry!"

Somehow, they managed to make it all the way up the Great Hall and into the room into which Dumbledore had directed the other champions. Neither of them spoke as they walked; neither of them really had anything to say. Cedric looked very confused when he saw them. "What's going on?" he asked, his brows knitting together. "Why are you two here?"

Harry opened his mouth, planning to make a valiant attempt to answer Cedric's question, but just then a group of adults burst through the doors- Moody, Dumbledore, McGonagall, Snape, Crouch, Bagman, Karkaroff, and Madam Maxime. They were all bickering.

Madam Maxime and Karkaroff were furious that the twins' names had come out of the goblet; it seemed entirely unfair to them that Hogwarts would have _three _champions rather than one.

Moody seemed to be insinuating that someone had planted their names in the Goblet, hoping to get them killed.

Neither Harry nor Sandy paid much attention to what anyone around them was saying. Both were numb, wondering how on earth this had happened. "Harry," Sandy muttered under her breath, making sure only he could hear, "I know you didn't put your name in the Goblet."

"Good," he replied, fervently and quietly. "I know you didn't put _yours_ in." She nodded, her black hair cascading across her face.

"Well, Barty?" said Dumbledore. "It's up to you."

"The Goblet of Fire constitutes a binding magical contract," said Crouch grimly. "I'm afraid they have to compete. Could I see the piece of parchment with their names please?"

Sandy numbly handed it to him. Upon examining it, his brows furrowed together. "What is it?" McGonagall asked sharply.

"What's more," Crouch replied, "the Goblet seems to think that the twins are a single entity, as their names are written on _one_ piece of parchment. It will not allow for them to compete separately, but they must both compete, as both their names were put into the Goblet. In short, they must complete all three tasks, together. They lose together or they win together."

"Zat eez not fair!" complained Madam Maxime. "Not only does 'ogwarts get two champions, but zey-" she gestured here at the twins, "-get a far better chance at it zan anyone else!"

"Not really," drawled Moody. "Having an extra person to look after is a liability, not a blessing, in the tournament. Trust me, after the first task, you'll be glad you've only got one champion."

TIBTOTIBTOTIBTO

When Harry awoke, he had forgotten about his fight with Ron the night before. However, he was first reminded by Ron's empty four-poster bed next to his, then by the sounds of a row coming from the common room.

"You just always have to get the attention, don't you?" bellowed Ron's voice. Harry's face hardened, as he wondered who Ron was rowing with now. "I bet that's why you've kept leading me since the end of first year, isn't it? You just like all the attention I give you!"

"That's not true, Ronald!" replied a second voice. With a sickening lurch of his stomach, Harry realized that Ron was rowing with Sandy.

Without bothering to change out of his pajamas, he grabbed his wand and raced down the stairs in the Gryffindor common room, and he saw Ron and Sandy standing on opposite sides of it. Ron was very red in the face, glaring malevolently at her, while Sandy merely looked on the verge of tears. "Why don't you just go snog some other bloke, then? How about Neville? I've heard he fancies you… or perhaps you want to lead _him_ on as well?"

"Don't you have a go at my sister!" Harry bellowed, standing in between them and pointing his wand directly at Ron's throat. "Have a go at me all you like, but you leave her alone!"

"Oh, Harry, don't…" Sandy whimpered from behind him, but he ignored her.

Ron turned his glare on Harry. "Fine, then. Go ahead. Jinx me. No one cares about Ron Weasley. I'm just Sandy Potter's _stupid_ boyfriend- oh, wait! I'm not even her boyfriend!"

At this, Sandy gave a strangled sob and collapsed in a heap on the floor, and Ron stormed out of the common room. Stowing his wand away, Harry knelt down next to his sister, hugging her. "Shhh, Sandy, it's okay… he's just being an arse, don't mind him…"

"What's all this racket?" asked a voice. Hermione made her way into the common room. "Harry, what's happened? Why's Sandy crying?" Her voice raised several octaves in alarm.

"Ron," Harry told her simply, watching as a look of comprehension dawned on her face.

"I'm going to kill him," she said passionately. "I can't believe he'd do this to her."

She bent down to comfort Sandy, but Sandy had stopped crying. She was wiping her tear-stained face with the sleeve of her robes. "I can't believe that git!" Sandy seethed.

Harry cocked his head at Hermione, as if he thought she could explain this sudden change in emotion.

Hermione shrugged. "Mood swings. A woman's prerogative."

TIBTOTIBTOTIBTO

"Are you nervous?"

Sandy glanced sideways at her brother as they waited to be called into the arena. They were the only two left in the champions' tent now. "Yes," he replied honestly. "More nervous than I've ever been in my entire life."

"Me too," she admitted. "I'm terrified. It would be better if-"

Harry knew that she had been about to say that she would feel better if they knew that Ron was on their side, but she had cut herself off. Out of anger, Sandy had given Ron the cold shoulder entirely, pretending as though he didn't exist. She refused to even talk about him with Harry and Hermione. Harry took her hand and gave it a quick, reassuring squeeze. "We'll do just fine," he told her. "Hermione's been helping us practice the Summoning Charm, and we've been flying since our first year here. We'll be fine."

She smiled at him, though she still looked unconvinced.

Neither of them really remembered being brought into the arena. The next thing either of them remembered was being in the air. "All right, Sandy," Harry said, as they hovered about twenty feet in the air. "You know what to do."

Watching in the stands as Sandy jerked hard to the left to avoid a billow of fire shooting out of the Horntails' mouth, Ron turned pale and said hoarsely, "Blimey, she'd have to be nutters to put her own name into that Goblet!"

"Caught on, have you?" Hermione said coldly. She was sitting behind him, and when he turned to face her, she only glared at him. "You really hurt her, you know. I mean, Harry was upset too, but he's a bloke, and he'll get over it soon enough. Sandy's a strong girl, but she trust you, and you really, really hurt her, Ronald."

Ron bit his lip, but said nothing, turning back around just in time to see Harry and Sandy luring the Hungarian Horntail away from its eggs. "Come on," he muttered, gripping the railing of the stands in front of him. "Come on!"

The crowd watched in reverential awe as Harry went into a spectacular dive while Sandy zoomed round the dragon's head, keeping it occupied. Harry pulled out of the dive, clutching the golden egg, and the crowd went mad.

Ron waited outside the champions' tent for what felt like ages before the twins emerged. They both glared at him coldly, and Sandy grabbed her brother's hand and said, "Come on, Harry, let's go get some food…"

"No, wait!" Ron called desperately. "Please wait."

Letting out an exasperated sigh, Sandy stopped and dropped Harry's hand. "Yes?" she said, irritably.

"I'm sorry," said Ron, looking down at his own feet, ashamed. "I'm sorry, I was wrong. I was wrong to be angry, I was wrong to say those things to _both_ of you, but especially to you, Sandy. I was wrong, I was a complete and total arse."

When he looked up again, Harry was grinning at him. "Glad to have you back, mate," he said, clapping him on the shoulder. Harry then glanced back at his sister. "Er- I think I'll leave you two alone for a moment. I'll see you two up at the Great Hall?" Sandy nodded, and Harry left them.

"I'm really sorry," Ron said again. "I-"

"Ron," she said, interrupting him, "did you really think that? I know you were angry, otherwise you never would've said that to me. But did any part of you really think that I was just leading you on, and that's why I told you I wasn't ready for a relationship?"

"No!" he said, looking horrified. "Well," he amended, "not exactly. But when you first told me you weren't ready, I thought maybe you had stopped fancying me and you hadn't quite worked out how to tell me. I know my temper can be something frightful."

She grimaced. "Tell me about it." Then, "I'm sorry you felt that way, Ron. I'm sorry… I should've been more clear. I do still fancy you, Ron. A great deal. I fancy you more and more every day. I'm truly just not ready."

"I understand now," he said. "And I'm sorry that I've been such an arse… I was bang out of order."

"S'okay," she said, flashing him one of her brilliant smiles that he had so missed in the weeks that they had been fighting. "I forgive you."

TIBTOTIBTOTIBTO

"How many more horoscopes do you need?"

Sandy had been helping Ron with his horoscopes homework for Divinations since the end of dinner, but they had been having such a good time while doing so, chatting and laughing, that it was now nearly one in the morning and they were the only ones in the common room. "Just one more," he said, a pleading tone entering his voice. "Please don't make me think of one on my own, I'm horrible at it…"

"Oh, fine," she groaned, closing her eyes as she thought. "Oh! Here's a good one- you'll be pecked to death by a peck of owls."

"Brilliant!" he exclaimed, scribbling it down eagerly. When he was done, he rolled up the parchment and said, "You're the best, Sandy."

"So you've told me," she said, turning faintly pink, but grinning ruefully at him nonetheless. "What would you do without me?"

"Fail," he replied without hesitation.

Yawning and getting up to stretch, she said, "Well, it's pretty late. I'm going to go up to bed."

"Wait!" he said hastily, turning bright red at the thought of what he was about to do.

"What?" she asked, looking bewildered. He usually didn't turn red until _after_ she said something sweet to him.

"You know the, erm, Yule Ball that's coming up?" he said, scratching the back of his head in what he hoped was a casual manner.

"The whole school's been talking about it, Ronald, of course I do," she said, giving him a plaintive look that told him she knew where he was going with this.

"I was wondering, if, erm… ahh… oh, bloody hell," he cursed. Sucking in a deep breath, he spit out, "Sandy, do you want to go to the ball with me?"

She allowed a bright smile to spread over her face. "Yes, Ron. I'd love to go to the ball with you."

He beamed at her. "Brilliant! Great! I'll, erm, I'll see you in the morning then! Good night!"

Chuckling, she said, "Good night, Ron." He stood there, waving like a fool, as she climbed the stairs to the girls' dormitory.

TIBTOTIBTOTIBTO

"I'm really glad you came to the ball with me."

Ron beamed at Sandy as he held her close to him and they spun rather aimlessly in a circle, not paying much attention to the music of the Weird Sisters at all. "Me too," she said, smiling softly at him.

"I am sorry that my dress robes are so awful though," he said, frowning and looking down at the lacy mess that were his robes. When she chuckled, he added, "Yours are gorgeous though." Her dress robes were emerald green to match her eyes, and they conformed to her figure quite nicely.

"Thanks," she said, her smile growing broader at his praise. Then, grimacing, she asked, "D'you mind if we take a break? My feet are bloody killing me."

Chuckling, he said, "Sure." He took her hand and, spotting Harry seated near the edge of the dance floor, led her over to him.

"Enjoying yourself?" she asked her brother, seating herself next to him and looking at him expectantly.

He grunted, rolling his emerald green eyes, but otherwise did not answer her question. "I can't _believe_ she's came with _him_."

"Who?" Ron asked, perplexed.

"If you're talking about Hermione," Sandy said sharply, her voice cold, "then you're being a downright arse, Harry."

"Who else would I be talking about?" he exclaimed, throwing his arms up in the air. "I can't believe she came with Viktor Krum!"

"Hermione was asked to the ball by Krum?" Ron said, raising his eyebrows in an impressed manner. "Very nice."

"No, no, it's not nice at all!" Harry said, glaring at Ron, who had seated himself on Harry's other side. "She's… she's… she's _fraternizing with the enemy!_"

"Oh _please_!" Sandy said, her eyes narrowing. Ron felt himself recoil, even though he knew the look wasn't directed at him. He had been on the receiving end of that look many times in the weeks that they hadn't been speaking to each other. "Harry, you're being a complete tosspot. _You_ didn't ask Hermione to the ball, because _you_ were being _stupid_, so you have _no_ right at all to be upset with her for going with a bloke who _did_ ask her! Don't be such an ass, you're better than that! And I swear to Merlin, if you say _anything_ to Hermione along the lines of 'fraternizing with the enemy', I'll castrate you with a rusty spoon, brother or not."

With that, she gathered up the skirts of her dress robes and stormed out into the garden. "What d'you reckon?" Ron said after a moment, looking after her retreating figure.

"I reckon you better go after her," Harry said grimly. "If I talk to her now, she'll probably just, er- what was it? Oh yeah, castrate me with a rusty spoon."

Chuckling, Ron said, "See you, mate."

He found her sitting on a bench in the garden, staring quite miserably at her shoes. She looked up when she heard him approaching, and she said, "Ron, I'm sorry to lose my temper like that back there. It's just that Harry-"

"No, it's okay," he said, holding up his hands to silence her. He sat down next to her and wrapped an arm around her. "You're right, he _is_ being a total tosspot. If he wanted to go with Hermione, he should've asked her before Krum did."

"So… you agree with me?" she said, her green eyes wide as though she hardly dared to believe what she was hearing.

"Yes," he replied, nodding. "I kept putting off asking you, because I was rather nervous. But then I heard that Neville was planning on asking you, and so was Colin. And even though I know you fancy me, I knew that I should ask you first, if I really want you to go with me. Harry should've done the same for Hermione."

She smiled at him. "I hate yelling at my brother like that. I really do. But she's my best mate. And she _does_ fancy Harry. She would've said yes, had he asked… but what was she supposed to do? Turn down Krum? I mean, it didn't look like Harry was _going _to ask her… and Krum is a decent bloke."

"He is a fantastic Quidditch player," Ron added, grinning. "Well, look. Harry could never be mad at you, at least for long. I don't think he's even mad at you now. And deep down, he knows your're right. He'll come round, Sandy. Don't you worry."

TIBTOTIBTOTIBTO

Sandy glanced at her watch, lugging Fleur's sister along with her as best as she good. They were outside the hour time limit now. They had to get back to the starting place. Harry was swimming just a few feet ahead of her, carrying Ron. They had been swimming back for what felt like ages, surely they were nearly there…

Suddenly, she noticed that Harry's feet were losing their webbing, and she realized that the gillyweed must be wearing off. She opened her mouth to warn him, or least issue a long stream of bubbles at him.

Big mistake.

Her gills were disappearing, and she swallowed a mouthful of water, which she promptly choked on. She couldn't keep swimming…

Harry, meanwhile, finally broke the surface, and just in time too. Ron awoke as soon as their heads were above the water. "Are you the last one then, mate?" he asked, seeing the other champions on the bank. "Wait, where's Sandy?"

"She's right behind me," Harry replied, coughing a bit. But, upon turning around, he saw that Sandy was nowhere to be seen. "Shit," he cursed. "Ron, swim to the bank. She didn't make it to the surface, and she's got Fleur's sister." Ron turned pale, but did as he was told.

Harry dove back under the water and saw his sister several feet below him, her mouth open, her hands still clenched on Fleur's sister's robes. Swimming to her, he grabbed her and Fleur's sister, and, with great difficulty, hauled them to the surfaced. Fleur's sister awoke as soon as her head broke the surface, and she spoke in rapid French, sounding frightened. "Help me with her," Harry panted, gesturing to his sister.

The girl still looked frightened, but nonetheless, grabbed Sandy's other arm and helped Harry pull her ashore. Ron was upon them almost as soon as they reached the bank. "Is she okay?" he croaked.  
"I dunno, the gillyweed wore off right before I surfaced, I guess she didn't make it in time," Harry told him.

Madam Pomfrey bustled over to her. "Oh dear," she tutted. "There, this should do it." She tapped her wand to Sandy's rib cage, and Sandy immediately opened her eyes and shot out a stream of water. She sat up and coughed several times. "Here, dear, take this," said Madam Pomfrey, handing her some Pepperup Potion. Sandy downed it in one gulp, and steam poured out of her ears.

"Are you alright?" Ron asked her anxiously, taking off a towel that had been wrapped around him and placing it on her shoulders.

"I am never," she said, her voice hoarse, "going near that lake again."

TIBTOTIBTOTIBTO

"I vant to know vat is going on between you and Hermy-own."

Krum glared at Harry, his arms crossed.

"Oh!" Harry said, realization dawning on him. Krum wanted to talk to Harry about Hermione. "We're just friends."

"Are you sure?" Krum pressed. "She talks about you a lot."

Hope burgeoned in Harry's chest for the first time since the ball. "We're just friends," he repeated.

"And you do not vant more?" he asked.

Harry hesitated. He felt that if he lied to Krum, Krum would know. "Well… the thing is, I do. But I've been a bit of an idiot about it, so right now, she's not interested in me. She's interested in you. It's her decision not mine."

Krum eyed him warily, as if he were judging Harry right on the spot. Then his expression softened. "You are correct," he admitted. "It is up to her… you and your sister are very good fliers, you know. Have you ever considered playing Quidditch as a career?"

TIBTOTIBTOTIBTO

"Take the cup."

Diggory looked at them, his expression determined. "I wouldn't have made it this far without the two of you," he continued. "You told me about the dragons, you saved me from Krum back there, and the spider just now. _You _take it."

"No," insisted Harry from his seated positing on the ground, clutching his bleeding leg. Sandy knelt down next to him and ripped off part of his sleeve and tied it haphazardly around his leg, stemming the bleeding. "Thanks," he murmured to her. Then turning back to Cedric, he said, "You were going to beat us to the cup. It's yours, fair and square. _Take it._"

Cedric shook his head. Turning to Sandy, he said, "_You_ take it then! You were in front of me, I wasn't really going to beat you."

"No, Cedric, I can't," she said, shaking her head. "You heard Mr. Crouch the night we were selected. Whoever put Harry's name and my name into the Goblet bewitched it into the thinking that, not only are there four schools competing, but that Harry and I are one entity. We _have_ to compete together. We win together, we lose together. I wouldn't have been able to take the cup and win until Harry got there. You were going to beat us, Cedric. Just take it."

"We'll take it together then," said Cedric, with the tone of a person whose mind has been made. "All three of us."

"Are you sure?" Harry asked, looking up at Cedric incredulously.

"Yes." He nodded.

"All right then," said Sandy, allowing a small smile to spread across her face as she helped Harry get up and hobble over toward the cup. "On the count of three."

TIBTOTIBTOTIBTO

"Are you ready to die now?"

Voldemort stared at the twins cruelly, his scarlet eyes boring into them. Sandy was very grateful when she felt her brother grab her hand and squeeze it tightly in his.

They were in this together.

"How touching," Voldemort mocked, and the Death Eaters encircling them laughed. "Brotherly love. Or perhaps it's that you are too weak to stand on your own?"

Sandy felt herself shaking, but somehow she managed to keep her voice steady as she told him, "A true mark of strength is recognizing that death is but the next great adventure."

Harry realized that she was quoting Dumbledore, and he felt stronger for it.

"Pathetic," spat Voldemort. Raising his wand, he said, "Who shall I kill first? You're all grown up, and too old to kill with one curse now. Ahh, yes… I'll kill the boy first. Step forward, Harry." Harry squeezed his sister's hand once more before releasing it, and he stepped forward. Grinning cruelly at him, Voldemort said, "D'you reckon your sister will go mad when she watches you die? Don't worry, I'll kill her soon after… the Dark Lord is _always _merciful… ready to die, Harry?"

Ignoring the sounds of Sandy's shallow breathing coming from right behind him, he nodded. "Right then," said Voldemort. "We duel." He raised his wand and cried, "_Avada Kedavra!_"

At the same time, two shouts of "_Expelliarmus!_" could be heard, echoing throughout the graveyard.

Harry turned to see who else had tried to Disarm Voldemort. Sandy had her wand raised and a wild look in her eye; she had not been willing to let her brother face Voldemort alone. However, Harry's attentions were soon taken from his sister, as the three wands- his, Sandy's, and Voldemort's- were connected by golden beams of light.

The Death Eaters called urgently up to Voldemort, wondering what to do and asking for instructions.

"Nothing! Do nothing!" he shrieked at them. "They are mine to kill!"

TIBTOTIBTOTIBTO

"He's-not-_back!_" insisted Fudge, turning bright red before storming out of the Hospital Wing.

Dumbledore gave instructions to nearly everyone in the room, but neither of the twins were listening. Except for when Sirius left. "Does he have to leave?" Sandy asked sadly, looking at Dumbledore.

"I'm afraid so," the Headmaster replied.

"Don't worry," Sirius told her softly, kissing her on the head. "I'll be in touch soon enough." He hugged Harry before transforming back into a black, shaggy dog and bounding out the door.

When everyone else had gone, it was just Ron, Hermione, Fred, George, and Mrs. Weasley left with the twins. "Er- can I go back to sleep?" Harry asked sadly.

"Oh, Harry, dear!" Mrs. Weasley cried, looking and sounding as though she were on the verge of tears. She sprang up from her seat and enveloped him in a bone crushing hug. "Oh you poor thing…" Despite his desire for a dreamless sleep, Harry did not make a move to push her away. He had never been hugged like this before, as though he were her child…

Sandy, meanwhile, looked over at her brother being hugged by Mrs. Weasley, then down at her own hands. Ron, seeing this, stood up from his chair and made his way over to her decisively. He took her face in his hands and leaned toward her. "What're you doing?" she muttered softly, though she did not push him away.

"Something I should've done a long time ago," he replied in a whisper.

Then he kissed her for all to see.

TIBTOTIBTOTIBTO

"To Cedric Diggory!"

The toasts echoed through the Great Hall, though Harry did notice that the Slytherin table remained conspicuously silent. He glanced at his sister, who was resting her head on Ron's shoulder, a single tear making its way down her cheek. As he watched, Ron turned and placed a soft kiss on Sandy's black hair, closing his eyes as he did so.

At this, Harry managed a small smile, one of the few he had managed since he had entered that maze. They would make a good couple, and they would keep each other happy. And he had a feeling that everyone would be needing some more happiness in the days to come.


	5. Chapter 5

**A/N: Harry Potter is still not mine… Please, please, please review! **

Chapter 5: Year the Fifth

"This is letter is bloody worthless!"

Sandy groaned in frustration as she balled up Ron's most recent letter and threw it angrily into the corner. Her sudden outburst had startled her black owl, Thunder, who had been sleeping in his gaze, and he hooted reproachfully at her. She ignored him and turned to her twin, who seemed quite unperturbed by her anger. "You would think," she seethed, "that at least _Ronald_ would bother to give me some news, seeing as he's my _boyfriend_, but no- apparently not."

"Let's face it, Sandy," Harry sighed, running a hand through his already messy jet black hair. "Neither Ron nor Hermione are going to tell us anything useful. At least, not until we see them."

"But _when_ are we going to see them?" she asked, crying exasperatedly. "No one's bothered to tell us even that!"

Harry shrugged. "I dunno."

She uttered a small scream of frustration and aimed a kick at their desk, causing Thunder to hoot angrily at her. "Calm down," her brother told her, taking her firmly by the shoulders. "You know I'm just as angry as you are. But we need to keep our heads. Remember what Sirius said?"

"'Don't do anything rash'," she replied, repeating the words of their godfather that they had both committed to memory. She sucked in a deep, calming breath. "You're right."

"Come on," he told her, pulling their bedroom door open slowly and silently. "Let's go watch the news from Aunt Petunia's hydrangea bush."

TIBTOTIBTOTIBTO

"WE WERE THE ONES WHO FOUGHT VOLDEMORT LAST YEAR! DON'T YOU THINK WE DESERVE TO KNOW WHAT'S GOING ON? OR ARE WE TOO DAFT TO TAKE CARE OF OURSELVES?"

Sandy looked absolutely livid as she screeched angrily at Ron and Hermione, both of whom recoiled in fear. Harry supposed he, too, would have been afraid, had he not been absolutely furious as well.

"Dumbledore made us-" Ron said, making to explain that Dumbledore had made them promise not to say anything important again, but it was Harry that cut him off.

"OH, OF COURSE! LIKE YOU TWO HAVE NEVER BROKEN THE RULES BEFORE!" he roared sarcastically.

Fred and George Apparated into the room with a great crack. "Ahhh, lovely to see you again, Harry, Sandy," George said jovially, nodding his head at each of the twins in turn. "Venting your anger on these two here, I hear?"

Sandy huffed and crossed her arms, but asked George, "What've you got in your hand?"

"Ahhh," Fred said, looking delighted that she had asked, "these, milady, are Extendable Ears."

Later that night, Ron found Sandy helping his mum clean up the kitchen. "Er, Mum?" he said, clearing his throat loudly. "Could I have a word with Sandy?"

"Yes, of course, Ronald," Mrs. Weasley said, beaming at Sandy in a way that told her that Ron had informed his mother of their relationship. "You go with Ronald, Sandy dear, I've quite got it from here."

Sandy nodded and turned on her heel to face Ron, who led her into the dark sitting room. Talking in hushed tones so as not to wake something, he said, "Look, I know you must still be upset with me for not telling you anything over the summer. And I understand why. I'm your boyfriend, I'm supposed to take your side, not anyone else's not even Dumbledore's." He took in a long, shaky breath before continuing. "But Dumbledore spoke to me alone, after he had made Hermione and me swear not to tell you and Harry anything. He told me that he knew I was seriously thinking of breaking my promise that I had just made and telling you what I knew. And then he said the one thing that would convince me not to do so."

Curiously, she cocked her head at him. "What's that?"

"He said that the less you know, the safer you'd be," Ron told her softly. "He said that by putting knowledge in your hands, or perhaps another's if Pig or Thunder went astray, that I would be putting you in danger. He knew I wouldn't tell you anything then. He knew I'd do anything to keep you safe, no matter how angry it made you."

He was silent for a moment, hanging his head. Then she said, "Ron." He lifted his head, and his eyes locked onto hers. "I'm not angry anymore." She pressed his lips to hers firmly, her hand grasping the back of his neck tightly. She pulled away slightly and whispered, "Thank you."

TIBTOTIBTOTIBTO

"Congratulations, Ron."

Sandy sat next to her redheaded boyfriend on a loveseat in the sitting room of Grimmauld Place, beaming at him. "Thanks," he replied, smiling broadly back. Then a flicker of a frown crossed his handsome features. "I am sorry you didn't get made prefect though, Sandy. You did have some stiff competition from Hermione, but I was almost _sure_ Harry would be made prefect."

Sandy shrugged. "It doesn't matter," she told him. "We've got bigger things on our minds." He grimaced, knowing that she was talking about Voldemort, his return, and the Ministry's refusal to accept it. Seeing this, she told him brightly, "I know you'll be a great prefect, Ronald. Just ignore Fred and George- they're just joking around like always."

"Thanks," he repeated, a smile gracing his face once more. Then, smirking, he said, "You know, I think a bit of celebrating is in order…"

"And what did you have in mind?" she asked, raising a single eyebrow, though she knew perfectly well what she had in mind.

"This," he replied, pressing his mouth to hers, kissing her softly. His arms slowly made their way around her, drawing her to him tightly, and she leaned further into him. His tongue traced the seam of her lips, and she allowed him to explore her mouth with his tongue, letting loose a soft moan as he did so. When she pulled away, leaning her forehead against his, he murmured, "I love you."

Her green eyes widened at him. But then she said, "I love you too, Ron."

TIBTOTIBTOTIBTO

"Take your seats."

Umbridge indicated two desks facing away from each other, each with a piece of parchment and a quill resting on them. The twins took their seats reluctantly. "You two will be writing some lines for me today, I'm afraid," she told them rather unnecessarily.

Sandy picked up the quill and bit back a sarcastic remark. "Erm, Professor? I need some ink."

"Me as well," piped up Harry, who seemed to be lacking an ink pot as well.

"You won't be needing any," replied Umbridge sweetly, a sickly smile spreading over her squat, toad-like face.

"What do you want us to write?" Harry asked darkly.

"You will write, 'I must not tell lies'," she instructed them, sounding more gleeful by the minute.

"How many times?" asked Sandy, a feeling of great trepidation building in her stomach. If Umbridge was happy, this couldn't end well.

"We'll see," replied the toad cryptically. "You may begin."

It took a few moments for them to realize exactly what was happening. Harry was a bit quicker on the uptake, as he stared openmouthed at the gaping wound on the back of his left hand that read _I will not tell lies_. Hearing her brother's gasp of surprise, Sandy glanced at the back of her own hand and caught on as well. "Professor," Harry began, "this isn't right."

Sandy whipped around in her chair, her green eyes narrowing. She knew where he was going with this. Harry was quite unwilling to give Umbridge any sign of weakness in himself. However, he would not allow his _sister_ to be tortured as well. "Harry-" she warned, her tone stern, but he did not listen.

"What's the matter, dear?" Umbridge said, her voice sickly sweet. "Is something wrong?"

"My sister shouldn't have to do these detentions," Harry continued in reply.

"Harry, shut up," Sandy said, her voice growing stronger.

"I'll do double the number of detentions," Harry offered, continuing to ignore his sister's protests, "as long as she doesn't have to do anymore."

"HARRY, SHUT UP!" Sandy roared, her voice reaching full volume. Many of the cats in the pictures that peppered Umbridge's office sought refuge out of sight. When he finally glared at her, she returned his gaze evenly and said through gritted teeth, "I. Am. Fine." She turned to Umbridge and said firmly, "Nothing is wrong, Professor. We'll just get back to our lines, then."

"Good, dear, good. Let's hope the message _sinks in_ quickly enough."

TIBTOTIBTOTIBTO

"So you're trying out for the Quidditch team?" Sandy said brightly after Harry left her and Ron alone the in common room, saying that he was going to bed. She was hoping to steer the conversation away from the subject of her detentions with Umbridge.

"Yes," he said distractedly and rolling up his Potions essay so he could stare at her intently. "Sandy… I know I told you and Harry earlier, but you've really got to tell Dumbledore what that foul old bat is doing to you."

"_No_," she said firmly, gripping the arms of the chair in which she sat, as if doing so would give her strength. "As I've told you before, I don't want to bother him with petty concerns…"

"Petty?" he echoed incredulously, his red eyebrows disappearing behind his hair line. "Sandy, that hag is torturing you!" He grabbed her left hand and gingerly traced the wound, which was now remaining on her hand, even after her detentions were through. Gentle as his touch was, she still winced. Feeling this, he dropped her hand at once, and said resolutely, "Talk to Dumbledore."

"No," she repeated stubbornly. "Ron, he hasn't so much as looked at Harry and me since the end of last term. He clearly doesn't want to be bothered by us."

Ron sighed. "Fine," he said. He began packing away his things into his bag. Rising, he announced, "I'm going up to bed."

She grabbed his arm quickly, forcing him to stop and turn to look at her. Softly, she told him, "I love you."

His gaze softened as he replied, "I love you too."

TIBTOTIBTOTIBTO

"That was really good, Ron!"

Sandy beamed at him as he landed on the ground next to her. He grinned and dismounted his Cleansweep. "You reckon?" he said, as they began to troop back up toward the castle for lunch before the real Quidditch practice began.

"Yeah, I do," she replied nodding. She had been helping Ron practice his Keeping since the end of breakfast. It made sense, since she was the star Chaser of the Gryffindor Quidditch team; meanwhile, Hermione had dragged off a disgruntled looking Harry to complete some homework. "You work like that during our training sessions, and you'll definitely give Wood a run for his money."

"Thanks," he said. "I just wish Fred and George would stop taking the mickey out of me, though. First it was being a prefect, now they haven't shut up about joining the Quidditch team…"

"Oh, don't listen to them," she advised him. "You know them, they love having a good laugh. It's not _you_, they're just trying to find someone to pick on."

"You're probably right," he said, his tone a great deal lighter than it had been minutes before. Then, "Thanks for helping me train, Sandy."

"Of course!" she chirped. "Part of being a good girlfriend, I supposed." She cracked a grin at him.

"Aw, you're a great girlfriend anyway, even without helping me with my homework and Quidditch," he told her genuinely, draping an arm around her shoulder. "The best I could've asked for."

Her cheeks turned bright red, rivaling Ron's hair, as they walked into the Great Hall.

Spotting them, Hermione waved them over. "How was practicing?" she asked brightly. Seeing the color of Sandy's cheeks, she asked in a concerned tone of voice, "Oh, Sandy, did you let Ron practice the Color-Change Charm on you again?"

TIBTOTIBTOTIBTO

"Er- Disarming can be very useful."

Harry looked incredibly uncomfortable in front of the rest of the members of the D.A. and he was immensely grateful when Sandy took over. "To demonstrate, Harry and I will duel."

"No, we can't duel," he told her firmly. "Remember, in the graveyard…?"

"Oh, yes," she said, her grin fading. "Priori Incantatem."

"Erm," said Zacharias Smith, "d'you two mind explaining to us what you've been going on about? Seeing as you are supposed to be teaching us?"

Glaring at him, Hermione snapped, "Priori Incantatem only occurs when two wands that share a core are forced by their owners to duel against each other. One wand will be forced by the other to regurgitate a sort of ghostly imprint of the last spells it performed. Harry's and Sandy's wands have feathers from the same phoenix."

Sandy nodded. "She's right. Voldemort's wand has a feather from the same phoenix as well."

Several people jumped at the name, and even more looked shocked at the information about their wands. "Well, then," Harry said, breaking the awkward silence and clapping his hands together, "perhaps you'd like to duel someone else then, Sandy…?" He looked at her hopefully. He wasn't quite in the mood to duel.

"Alright," she said grudgingly. Scanning the small crowd of people there, she spotted Ron. Grinning ruefully at him, she said, "Come on up here, Ron."

He turned bright red and mumbled his assent. "Er- do I have to?" he asked.

"Well, fine, we won't _duel_," she conceded. "We will stand across from each other, and we will both try to Disarm each other first."

Ron nodded, still looking slightly uncomfortably as he took his position across from his girlfriend.

"My money's on Sandy," George said to his twin, loud enough for everyone to hear. "I've got… one Galleon and seven Sickles."

"You're on," said Fred, and they shook on it with gusto.

Ron scowled at his brothers, but quickly returned his attentions to his girlfriend. "Ready?" she said. "Count us in, Harry."

Harry, who was fighting to keep an amused grin off his face, said, "One… two… three!"

Ron had barely opened his mouth, when Sandy raised her wand and cried, "_Expelliarmus!_" Ron's wand flew out of his hand and landed a good five feet behind him and he was knocked off his feet. He scowled as the room howled with laughter. "Oh, don't be such a sore loser, Ronald," Sandy advised, standing over him, a grin spread over her face. She offered him a hand to help him up, and his scowl vanished almost instantly.

"So," Harry said, "that's how it's done. Everyone pair up and start practicing on each other. My sister and I will be around shortly to help people out!"

"Er, can you show me how to do it properly?" Ron asked Sandy, slightly pink. "I've never actually done it properly before…"

"Oh, sure," she said. If she was surprised, she did not show it. "Show me how you do it now."

"Er, okay." Jabbing his wand in her direction, he cried, "_Expelliarmus!_" Nothing happened. His face fell. "I'm hopeless…"

"No, you're not," she told him firmly. "You've just got the wrong wand movement. Here…"

Meanwhile, Hermione had just successfully Disarmed Harry. "That was brilliant, Hermione!" he said brightly.

"Oh, thanks, Harry!" she said, grinning. "I've done it before, but never quite as good as that… usually their wand just sort of falls out of their hand…"

"That was really, really good," he told her. Lowering his voice, he added, "Thanks for talking Sandy and me into this, Hermione. It's a brilliant idea."

She flushed at his praise. "You're a really great teacher, Harry," she said.

"So, er, listen," he said. "I want to t-"

"Harry!" called Neville from across the room. "I _really_ need your help over here…"

Harry groaned. He had been meaning to talk to Hermione about maybe going into Hogsmeade with him one weekend, whenever the next trip was… but that would have to wait. He looked at her, and she said, "Don't worry, Harry, we'll talk later. Go help Neville."

He grinned at her, before turning on his heel and saying, "What's up, Neville?"

TIBTOTIBTOTIBTO

The hours seemed to drag on as they waited for word on Mr. Weasley from St. Mungo's.

Sirius was staring blankly into the fire. Fred and George had both dozed off, mouths open. Ginny was curled up on the couch, but awake, staring off into space without a trace of emotion on her face. Harry was sitting in an armchair next to his godfather, wishing desperately that Hermione was there. He hadn't yet found the time to talk to her about Hogsmeade…

Sandy and Ron were sitting on a loveseat next to Harry's armchair. Sandy's was pushed up against the side of the loveseat, while Ron was almost lying down, curled into her, his head resting against her chest and his hands clutching at her dressing robes almost desperately. Sandy's green eyes stared directly ahead of her as her hands absentmindedly stroked Ron's hair.

Taking one look at her, Harry knew that she was thinking along the same lines he was: were they responsible for the attack on Mr. Weasley? He hadn't yet had a chance to talk to his twin, but he knew that in his dream, he had seen it all from the snake's point of view… was he responsible? His stomach clenched uncomfortably. He needed to have a word with his sister. "Er- Sandy?" he said, snapping her out of her reverie. "You fancy helping me make some tea for this lot?"

She caught on as soon as she saw the look on his face. "Erm, yeah," she said. Bending down to speak to Ron, she said, "Ron, I'm going to go help Harry make a cup of tea for us. I'll be right back, yeah?"

He looked up at her, pale-faced. "Please don't go," he moaned, his grip on her robes tightening.

"Ron," she sighed, kissing the top of his ginger head. "I'll be right back. I _promise_."

This seemed to mollify him, and he released her. Standing up and brushing herself off, she beckoned Harry into the kitchen. "So," he said, speaking in hushed tones so that the others wouldn't be able to hear from the sitting room as he went about making tea, "was your dream the same as mine?"

"I reckon so," she said. "I dreamt the same dream we've been having all year- the one where I'm going down that corridor with all the doors… but this time, there was a man who had fallen asleep… and then… I attacked him. I was the snake."

"Yeah, that was my dream too," he replied. "D'you… d'you reckon we really _did_ have something to do with it?"

"I dunno," she said, shrugging. "I really have no idea, Harry. I mean… in Dumbledore's office, right before we left, there was a moment that I wanted to-"

"-attack him, yeah," he finished for her. He sighed, running a hand through her hair. After a moment, he said again, "What d'you reckon?"

She looked thoughtful for a moment. "Neither of us can turn into snakes."

"No, we can't. We'd know if we were Animagi."

"Neither of us knows how to Apparate."

"Also true."

"And maybe," she said slowly, "just maybe, we should stop worrying about this for now. At least, until we know if Mr. Weasley is going to be alright." Harry opened his mouth indignantly, but she held up her hand, saying, "Right now, _they_ need us. And we can't be there for them very well if we're absorbed in ourselves, now can we?"

He huffed, but said, "I suppose you're right."

TIBTOTIBTOTIBTO

"What the bloody hell are you two doing?"

Harry and Sandy had been sitting on the floor in Buckbeak's attic room, staring blankly at the wall opposite them. They had been resolutely hiding from the others ever since they returned from St. Mungo's, afraid of what they thought of them now, after hearing Moody saying that they may have been possessed by Voldemort. However, Hermione had wrenched the door open, looking furious. "Hermione, you're supposed to be skiing," Sandy said, avoiding the question.

"That doesn't matter," Hermione said firmly. "You've been hiding in here, all this time?"

"No," Harry replied resolutely.

"I'm not stupid," Hermione told him scathingly. "Honestly, d'you think any of us _care_ that you may have been possessed by Voldemort?" Sandy opened her mouth to answer her question, but Hermione ignored her and pressed on instead. "And even so, none of us think he really did."

"How would you know?" Harry scowled at her.

"Ginny doesn't think so," said Hermione smugly. "And she would know, wouldn't she? And besides, you can't have attacked Mr. Weasley, because how would you have gotten back to Hogwarts so fast? In case you've forgotten, Sandy, I was the one who found you writhing on the floor, screaming in pain!"

Sandy was silent, biting her lip. "Maybe he Apparated us," Harry retorted.

"How many times have I got to tell you?" Hermione shrieked in utter frustration. "_You-cannot-Apparate-or-Dispparate-in-Hogwarts-or-its-grounds!_" She sucked in a deep, calming breath. "Please, do us all a favor, and read _Hogwarts, A History_."

Harry grumbled.

Sounding desperate now, Hermione turned to Sandy. "Ron's waiting for you in your room," she said. "You haven't talked to him in two straight days. He says he just wants his girlfriend back."

Sandy looked up at this, her green eyes wide. Then she wordlessly got up, shuffled past Hermione and left the room.

Hermione seemed much happier now that she had persuaded one twin to come out of hermitage. Settling herself next to Harry on the floor, she prepared to persuade the second. "Harry," she said gently, "you're _not_ going mental. You're _not_ like Voldemort."

"How could you know?" he asked, looking at his feet rather than at her. "How could you possibly know what I'm feeling?"

"I know I don't," she said softly. "I couldn't possibly understand what you're going through. But I _do_ know that you're not going mental."

"How?"

"Because, even to this day, I still see in you the brave eleven-year old boy who rescued me from a mountain troll in the girls' bathroom." She smiled ruefully at him.

He sat there, stunned for a few moments. Then he said, "Hermione… would you like to come into Hogsmead with me next time there's a trip? As in… a date?"

She beamed brightly at him. "Harry, I'd love to."

TIBTOTIBTOTIBTO

"Er, shall we split up then?"

Sandy exchanged a look with her brother, trying to tell him without words that she was eager to have Ron all to herself this Valentine's Day. "Oh!" he said, catching on. He couldn't say that he disagreed; he wanted to have Hermione all to himself as well. "Yes, sure. We'll meet in the Three Broomsticks at noon, though, right, Hermione?" He glanced sideways at Hermione, who had shyly linked her arm in his.

"Yes, and don't be late!" she cried warningly to the retreating figures of Sandy and Ron. Turning to Harry, she said, "D'you reckon they'll be there?"

"They'll be there," he told her, nodding, and she beamed. "Whatever Ron may say, Sandy knows better than not to take you seriously." As they turned onto the main street of Hogsmeade, he asked her, "Where do you want to go first?"

"Oh, I don't really know," she said, her brows knitting together in indecision. Then, "Oh, Scrivenshaft's? I really do need a new quill."

"To Scrivenshaft's it is!"

Meanwhile, Ron and Sandy were walking down a less beaten path by the Shrieking Shack. "Why are we here?" Ron asked Sandy, who was leading the way, his hand clutched in hers.

"Because not that many people come this way," she explained, jerking her head toward the supposedly haunted building. "We'll have some degree of privacy."

"Oh," he said, realization dawning on him. He grinned roguishly.

Bending down, she brushed some snowflakes off the surface of a large rock and seated herself upon it. She smiled at him and patted the surface of the rock next to her- an invitation. He grinned and accepted, sitting next to her and wrapping his arm around her. "Look, Ron," she said suddenly, breaking what had been a comfortable moment of silence. "I brought you out here to talk."

"Okay," he said slowly, almost hesitantly. "About what?"

"Well," she said, reluctant. She had been planning to have this conversation with him since the holidays. Ever since she and Harry had shut themselves up and she hadn't spoken to him for two days straight… "I know it's difficult, sometimes, to be my boyfriend. I have a busy life, what with school and all, I have these issues having to do with Voldemort-oh, for Merlin's _sake_, Ronald- and you have to share me, in a weird sort of way, with my twin brother, because at times, he is the only other human being who understands exactly what I am going through." She sucked in a deep breath before continuing. "I should not have shut you out over the holidays. I should have given you more credit that I did. And the fact that you're still standing by me, not only as my friend, but as my boyfriend, means more to me than I can possibly say."

She paused for a moment, and he took the opportunity to speak his mind. "Sandy, look," he said, taking both her hands in his and catching her gaze, holding it steadily. "I may not be the smartest bloke around, but believe it or not, I did know that being your boyfriend may not be easy when I first told you that I fancied you. I knew about your past, and from what I had seen all that year, you were an extraordinary witch with an extraordinary tendency to get herself into trouble. I knew it wasn't going to a smooth ride. But I also know that you're more than worth it. You're the best person I know, Sandy, and I wouldn't give you up for the world."

She beamed at him broadly, her green eyes sparkling with unshed tears. "Ron, you really are just a big softie," she teased, poking him in the chest playfully.

He chuckled, but looked at her uncertainly. "So is all this settled then?"

"Yes," she said, giving him a swift kiss on the lips that he barely saw coming. He wound his arms around her, drawing her in closer, pressing his mouth onto hers. She pulled away slightly, murmuring, "I love you, Ron."

"I love you too, Sandy."

In the meantime, Harry and Hermione where spending their time together visiting the various shops that lined the streets of Hogsmeade. "So," said Hermione conversationally, when they finally reached the Three Broomsticks half an hour early for their meeting Sandy, Ron, and Hermione's mystery guests. "What made you invite me here on a date?"

Harry turned bright red, something Hermione had rarely seen him do before. "Well," he said, running a hand nervously through his already messy hair. "I've fancied you for quite a while now," he admitted. "Since third year."

"Since third year?" she echoed, raising her eyebrows, her brown eyes wide. "Harry, I didn't know that."

"Yes, well, I made Sandy promise not to tell you, and Ron was completely oblivious," he explained. "I was rather self-conscious, and I didn't want you to know for a while. And then when you went with Krum to the Yule Ball…"

"That's only because I was waiting for _you_ to ask me, and you didn't," she explained, the corners of her mouth twitching upward into a smile. "Oh, Harry. You've faced Voldemort and you've slain dragons and basilisks, but you can't work up the nerves to ask a girl out on a date?"

He grinned ruefully at her. "No, apparently not."

TIBTOTIBTOTIBTO

"We won?" Sandy said incredulously to Harry and Hermione as Ron was carried off by a throng of excited Gryffindor students. Groaning, she said, "Great, _now_ how am I supposed to tell him that his own girlfriend wasn't there to see him win the Quidditch Cup?"

"He'll understand," Harry told her bracingly, as they followed the rest of the Gryffindors at a distance into the castle. "Once we tell him about Grawp."

"D'you really think he will, Harry?" Hermione asked, slipping her hand in Harry's and sending a sideways glance at Sandy. "You know how inconsistent he is, and he gets a lot of his self-confidence in his playing from knowing that Sandy supports him."

"Thanks, 'Mione," said Sandy wearily. "That makes me feel loads better."

"I was only being honest," she said, shrugging.

"Well, on the bright side, he won't have to play Quidditch in front of the entire school again until next term," Harry pointed out, and Sandy nodded, allowing herself a small smile.

"Yes," she said, "I suppose so."

They had reached the portrait hole, and behind the Fat Lady, they could hear the sounds of a raucous celebration party already in full swing. Hermione gave the password to the Fat Lady, who swung forward to admit them into the common room.

"Sandy!" cried Ron, spotting her almost instantly. "There you are!" He crashed into her, throwing his arms around her in a tight bear hug. He pulled away, grinning madly, and handed her a butterbeer. "Join the party, it's just started!"

"Er-" she said, taking in the excited look on his face. How could she possibly leave the party without hurting him? And how could she possibly tell him that she hadn't seen the match? "Well, alright." She took the butterbeer from him and, popping the cap off, chugged its entire contents down quickly.

"Are you alright?" he asked, lowering his head so that his face was next to hers. "You seem a bit… off."

"I'm fine," she said, smiling in what she hoped was a reassuring manner. "Come on, Ron. This is a party! We've won! You've done it! Enjoy yourself!"

TIBTOTIBTOTIBTO

"Oh, it's no use! I'm never going to remember who led which goblin uprising in what year!"

Ron buried his head in his hands, only red hair showing.

Hermione glared at him over the top of her alarmingly large pile of History of Magic notes. "If you're going to have a nervous breakdown," she hissed, "could you please do it more quietly? Or better yet, go to Madam Pomfrey, she'll give you a Calming Draught!"

"I'm not having a nervous breakdown!" retorted Ron. "I'm just sick of all this studying. I want to go outside." Looking out of the common room window, he moaned, "How am I supposed to stay inside and study on a day like this?" Turning back to Sandy, he said, "I'm sorry. But I just don't think I can do it."

"It's fine, Ron," she chuckled, rolling up the piece of parchment that they had just been studying from. "Did you really care about your History of Magic O.W.L. anyway?"

"No," he said, shaking his head. As she started to put all her stuff away, he asked, "Aren't you going to keep studying?"

"I think I've had quite enough," she said. "If I don't know it by now, I'm not going to learn it by tomorrow." Looking out the window as Ron had done just a moment before, she said, "You know, I think I rather fancy a walk."

"I'm right with you," he said eagerly, jumping out of his chair at once.

"Harry?" Sandy called, looking around the common room for her twin. "I know he was in here…"

"Yes?" replied Harry, popping up from behind Hermione's mountain of notes.

"Are you coming with us?" she asked.

He shook his head. "I've got to study," he told her. "We're only about a quarter of the way through all of Hermione's notes."

"Still, some fresh air would do you some good," Sandy urged him. When Hermione appeared over the top of her notes, opening her mouth to argue, Sandy added, "You too, Hermione. We've all been studying since nearly eight this morning. It's… yes, it's nearly three in the afternoon now. We need a break, and all four of us are going to take a walk. I don't want any arguments. Let's go."

It was with great difficulty that Harry, Ron, and Sandy pried Hermione away from her notes, but they finally made their way out onto the grounds, basking in the warm sunlight. "I should be studying," Hermione grumbled, gazing longingly at Gryffindor Tower.

"Oh, hush," said Ron, flapping a hand at her. "Just enjoy being outdoors, would you? You can drag us back in and make us study until we snuff it in a bit."

TIBTOTIBTOTIBTO

"Harry- what exactly is the plan?"

Hermione came up along Harry on her thestral, looking quite nervous as she couldn't see what was supporting her in midair. She bit her lip, as though fearing his reply. "We get into the Department of Mysteries," he replied. "And we rescue Sirius."

"Oh," she said hesitantly. "I was wondering if perhaps you had something a bit more concrete than that…?"

"No, not really," he said, shaking his head. Sighing, he told her, "And I'd really appreciate it if my own girlfriend wasn't second guessing me at every turn."

"Harry, I'm-!" she said, looking flustered and turning red. "I'm not second guessing you!"

"Well, what are you doing then?" he snapped at her, glaring. "Because you certainly aren't supporting me wholeheartedly. Look at Ron- I'll bet he hasn't said a word against what we're doing to Sandy since she and I passed out during the History of Magic exam."

Hermione glanced behind her, where Ron and Sandy were flying behind them on their thestrals, chatting in hushed tones. Anger flaring up in her, she retorted, "Well, if you'd rather date Ron, then why don't you go ahead and do that?" She held back, allowing Harry to pull ahead of her so she wouldn't have to talk to him anymore.

Harry groaned in frustration. He knew he shouldn't have snapped at her; he had been taking his frustrations out on Ron, Hermione, and Sandy all year. He especially shouldn't have compared her relationship with him with Ron's relationship with Sandy. He spent half his time complaining about how much people lumped him together with his sister, despite the fact that they were two distinctly different people, yet he had just hinted to Hermione that he wanted with her exactly what Sandy had with Ron. Knowing he had to fix it, he made to ask his thestral to slow down, but it began to take a steep dive.

They had reached London.

TIBTOTIBTOTIBTO

"No, no, no!" Sandy cried, her voice rising in pitch. Neville was trying to comfort her, barely understandably through his broken, swollen nose, but she ignored him. She fretted as she watched Ron struggling with the brain. Pointing her wand at the brain again, she cried, "_Reducto! Reducto! REDUCTO!_" The brain did not release Ron completely, but its grip was loosened.

Suddenly, she heard screams echoing from another room. Turning to Neville, she said sharply, "Neville, can you watch them?" As soon as he nodded, she took off, following the sounds of what sounded like a fight.

When she came to the circular room with all the doors, she murmured to herself, "Which room…? Which room?"

Another scream shattered the silence, and she moved in its direction, opening a door that was directly on her right, revealing the veil room. She saw the various members of the Order dueling various Death Eaters, and her heart rose. Surely if the Order were here, everything would be alright, in the end…?

She spotting her twin, standing next to Sirius as they dueled Lucius Malfoy. "_Stupefy!_" she cried, pointing her wand at Lucius, who immediately froze and toppled over onto his back. As Sirius and Harry looked round for who had Stunned him, she made her way over to them, dodging curses and hexes as she went. "Harry! Sirius!" she called.

They turned toward her, and Harry's face split into a wide grin, despite the circumstance. "Nice one," he said appreciatively.

Bellatrix, taking advantage of the moment that Sirius was distracted, pointed her wand at him and out shot a jet of light that hit him in the chest.

"_No!_"

The twins' shared cries of anguish were lost among the cries of the battle raging around them, just as Sirius was lost in the veiled archway.

TIBTOTIBTOTIBTO

_"THE ONE WITH THE POWER TO VANQUISH THE DARK LORD APPROACHES… BORN AS THE SEVENTH MONTH DIES… BORN TO THOSE WHO HAVE THRICE DEFIED HIM… AND THE DARK LORD SHALL MARK ONE AS HIS EQUAL… BUT THE ONE SHALL HAVE POWERS THAT THE DARK LORDS KNOW NOT… AND EITHER MUST DIE AT THE HANDS OF THE OTHER FOR NEITHER CAN LIVE WHILE THE OTHER SURVIVES… THE ONE WITH THE POWER TO VANQUISH THE DARK LORD APPROACHES… BORN AS THE SEVENTH MONTH DIES…_"

As the silvery figure of Professor Trelawny sank back into the Pensieve, Sandy cleared her throat. "Sir," she said. "The prophecy obviously can't be referring to us."

"And just why not?" questioned Professor Dumbledore.

"Well," said Harry, exchanging a worried look with his sister before continuing, "obviously because there are _two_ of us. The prophecy only calls for the _one_ who will vanquish Voldemort."

"Ah," said Dumbledore, looking a bit pleased. "You've caught on." Sighing, he said, "Not all prophecies come true. In fact, many of the prophecies in the Hall of Prophecy have not come true. Some are only partially true. I'm afraid this one falls under this category."

"How so?" Sandy asked, looking perplexed.

"You see, very few people knew that there were _two_ Potter children," he explained. "I myself was one of the privileged few. Sirius was as well." Both the twins winced, the loss of Sirius still fresh in their minds, and Harry looked as though he might begin destroying things again. "If I am correct, the only people who knew that there were two of you were myself, Sirius, Remus, and your parents."

"But how did they keep it quiet?" Harry asked. "Didn't our mum and dad know before we were born that there were going to be two of us?"

"Ah, a very good question indeed. Though my sources tell me that Lily and James Potter did attend all the recommended prenatal Healer appointments, there is no evidence that they knew that they were expecting twins. Perhaps they didn't know and the fact that two children we patiently waiting to be born somehow escaped the Healer. Or perhaps she thought it best for the safety of her family that the existence of one child be kept secret. We may never know. However, we _do_ know that Voldemort believed there was only one Potter child."

Neither of the twins said anything, both of them were fixed upon Dumbledore, waiting for him to continue. Finally, he did, saying, "Only Harry's existence was widely known, as your parents went into hiding soon after your birth. When Voldemort came calling, he was only expecting a baby boy. Instead, he found twins. Naturally, he took it in his stride, refusing to be thrown off course by a child. As the prophecy does not indicate whether the one to vanquish him will be male or female, he thought it best not to risk letting either of you live, and he tried to kill you both with one curse. That, I believe, is why you have identical scars. Of course, your mother died to protect _both_ of you, so you were both protected by that ancient magic and Voldemort was reduced to a half-life. Until last June."

After a few moments of silence, Sandy spoke up. "So… which one of us has got to do it then?" she asked. "The prophecy, it said that… that neither could live while the other survives. So one of us has got to kill him, or he'll kill us. But which one of us is the one?"

Dumbledore observed her shrewdly. "The prophecy also states that Voldemort would mark the one as his equal… and on the night that he tried to kill both of you, he marked both of you as his equal."

"So…" Sandy said, catching on, "we've got to do it together then. We've got to kill him together… or he'll kill both of us. Did he know this? Is that why last year our names were put into the Goblet of Fire on the same piece of parchment? So we would have to compete as one champion? I thought it would simply be less work for whoever put our names in, but that would also guarantee that Voldemort would get both of us into that graveyard, and not just one of us."

"Yes," said Dumbledore, nodding. "He wants to kill you both at once, rather than kill one and then spend perhaps many more years chasing after the other, whose desire for revenge would have been awakened at that point." An uneasy silence fell over them. Finally, Dumbledore broke it, saying, "Think about it. Even if it were only one of you, would either of you let the other take this on alone?"

"No," Harry said softly, speaking for the first time in ages. "No, I wouldn't." He glanced at his sister, and his resolve strengthened. "We're in this together, prophecy or no prophecy. We're in this together, no matter what."

TIBTOTIBTOTIBTO

As Sandy made to follow her twin out of the train compartment, Ron grabbed her hand quickly. As she turned to face him, he said in a low whisper, "Sandy, listen. We're coming to get you very soon this summer. I've already talked to my mum, and she talked to Dumbledore. He says you won't have to stay long with the Muggles. And I'll- I'll write to you everyday, love."

"Thanks, Ron," she said softly, offering him a small smile. He kissed her fiercely, as if he were scared, before hugging her tightly to him. "Ron, it's okay. It's all okay."

"How can you be saying that to me?" he asked, sounding very upset. "How can _you_ be saying that when you're the one who's lost so much?"

She pulled away, a true smile gracing her pretty face for the first time since Sirius had died. "Let's see… I've got Dumbledore and the entire Order on my side. I've got my brother. I've got my best mate, Hermione. And I've got you."


	6. Chapter 6

**A/N: I still own nothing. Please review! **

Chapter 6: Year the Sixth

"Well, that wasn't totally terrible."

Harry and Hermione were sitting together in the sitting room of the Burrow, reveling in one of the precious few moments they had alone together. Hermione snorted. "Oh, please, Harry," she said, "I know I'm awful at Quidditch. I'm sorry you got stuck with me today; why don't you play with Sandy tomorrow? Or maybe Ronald?"

"Don't be ridiculous," he told her. "I love playing with you, no matter how bad you are- you're my girlfriend! Besides, Sandy and Ron love playing together. And I'm sure it'll help Ron be more confident this season." He thought excitedly of the captaincy of the Gryffindor Quidditch team, which he had been given for the coming school year. When he had first received the badge, he was worried that Sandy may be upset she didn't get it, but she had merely smiled, congratulated him, and said she didn't need the stress of being captain.

"If you insist," Hermione said, still sounding doubtful. "Although… I doubt I could play with Ron. He'd probably just bite my head off when I dropped the Quaffle."

Laughing, Harry wholeheartedly agreed. After a few moments, he sobered up and said, "Look, Hermione. I can't tell you how much it means to me- well, to Sandy as well, of course- but especially to me, that you're choosing to stand by me, even with the prophecy. I mean… my sister and I have been singled out. We have no way of escaping what we're destined to do… but you and Ron do, but you've chosen to stand by us. That means a lot, to both Sandy and me. So thank you."

"Harry, of course, I'll stand by you!" she said, as if it were the most obvious thing in the world. "I mean, I can't speak for Ronald, but Sandy is my best friend and you're my boyfriend! How could I abandon either of you?"

He only smiled softly at her and leaned forward to press a kiss to her soft lips. "Thank you, Hermione."

"I love Sandy, as my best friend, as a sister," she told him earnestly. "And I love you." She turned bright red and clapped a hand over her mouth, realizing what she had just let slip.

However, his grin grew even broader. "I love you too, Hermione."

Meanwhile, Sandy and Ron were busying themselves with degnoming the garden. "Honestly," Ron said, venting his feelings to his girlfriend, "my mother and her cleaning. You would think that You-Know-Who himself was going to step into our kitchen any minute and then let us go because it's _sparkling_."

Sandy snorted, sending another gnome flying off into the distance. "Honestly, Ron, you should learn to use the name. It's not that bad, try it with me- Vol… de… mort," she said, sounding his name out slowly as though Ron were a toddler. He jumped at the name, and she rolled her emerald green eyes at him. "Dumbledore always says, 'Fear of the name only increases fear of the thing itself'." Standing upright and surveying the garden with her hands on her hips, she said, "I think that was the last of them."

"Thank Merlin," Ron moaned, collapsing in a heap on the ground. "I'm exhausted."

"Oh, get up," Sandy said, nudging him with her foot. "You can't be _that_ tired." However, she sat down next to him and leaned against him, her head resting heavily on his shoulder. She was silent for a long time, and Ron didn't need to know Legilimency to know what she was thinking.

"You really miss him, don't you? Sirius, I mean?"

"Yeah," she replied, after another moment's silence, her voice thick with emotion. "It's just hard… sometimes… to realize that he's really gone."

He could feel her entire body shaking slightly as she began to cry silently, and his heart ached. Turning his head slightly, he pressed a soft kiss into her black hair and wrapped his arms around her. "Please don't cry, Sandy," he said softly. "Please don't."

She looked up at him, her green eyes still swimming with tears. "Other than Harry, he was the only family I've got left."

"I know," he said gently. "But you do still have Harry."

"Yes," she said, as he wiped away a few of her tears with the pads of his thumbs. "You're right, Ron. I'm sorry about this."

"Don't be stupid," he told her, the corner of his mouth twitching upward into a grin. He leaned forward and planted a chaste kiss on her lips. "I love you, Sandy."

"I love you too, Ron."

TIBTOTIBTOTIBTO

Ron and Hermione went to bed almost directly after the feast, leaving Harry alone in the corner of the common room with his twin sister, which was exactly what he wanted. Ron and Hermione may scoff at his theories about Malfoy, but Sandy would take him seriously. He told her in whispers, so that they wouldn't be overheard, about what he had overheard in Malfoy's compartment, and about Tonks' changed Patronus. When he had finished, she looked thoughtful for a moment. When she finally spoke, she said, "Well, it's not very smart of Draco to boast about being a Death Eater, is it?"

"No, it isn't," Harry said, an immense wave of relief crashing over him. He had feared for a moment that Sandy- his own twin- may doubt his beliefs about Malfoy, but here she was, supporting him as always. Harry once more appreciated the fact that oftentimes Sandy was the only one who could fully understand him. "But he's never been all that bright."

"True," she admitted. "And that's a very big lie to tell, if he weren't a Death Eater… Harry, I've been thinking. Hermione does have a point- Voldemort doesn't really _want_ sixteen year old Death Eaters, now does he?"

The relief that had washed over Harry just moments ago was replaced by a cold sense of betrayal. "You agreed with me when I first brought it up!" he hissed angrily. "You said you agreed!"

Taken aback at his anger, she hastily said, "And I'm not disagreeing with you now, Harry! I _do _think Malfoy has been made a Death Eater. I just think there's some other reason why… Malfoy's not particularly bright or talented, so why would an underage wizard do Voldemort any good?"

"A spy in Hogwarts?" he suggested, mollified now that she had explained herself.

"Maybe," she said, still not satisfied. "I dunno though… something just doesn't feel right about this."

"Sandy- what _does _feel right about this whole Voldemort business?"

"Fair point." After a minute, she asked, "What d'you reckon about Tonks' Patronus?"

He shrugged. "I dunno, it was big and had four legs."

"All I know about changing your Patronus is that you have to go through some sort of great emotional change or upheaval in order for that to happened," she told him slowly. "A Patronus reflected the character of the wizard or witch who casts it; Tonks must've changed somehow."

"Hmmm," was all Harry said in reply. Then, he said, "Well, I haven't the foggiest."

TIBTOTIBTOTIBTO

"Hey, Hermione. Wait- what's wrong?"

Sandy had emerged from the stall in the loo to see Hermione in front of the mirror, as she came closer, she realized that Hermione looked rather upset. "Oh," Hermione said, biting her lip. "I've just had a row with your brother."

"Was he being a prat?" Sandy asked conversationally, beginning to wash her hands, and Hermione was enormously grateful that Sandy hadn't immediately taken sides with her twin.

"Well, you know that Potions book he's got, the one with the writing all in it?" she said.

"Yeah," replied Sandy, nodding. "Hermione, that book allowed him to upstage you in Potions for the first time _ever_. Of _course_ I know what you're talking about."

Hermione grimaced, but continued. "I had a chat with him about it, you see? I don't think it's a good idea to be following instructions out of a book that were written by Merlin knows who… and there aren't just Potions instructions in there, there are jinxes and hexes! What if they're dangerous?"

"You've got a fair point," Sandy said. "As for the Potions instructions, I think those are rather harmless and quite helpful, as Harry as proved in class. And," she said, silencing Hermione, who had been on the verge of speaking once more, with a look, "if anything goes wrong in class, Slughorn is there to set it straight. I know you don't like it that he's gotten a better reputation than you because of that book, but if _you_ followed those instructions, I'm sure your potions would be better than his."

"Thanks," Hermione said to her, albeit somewhat grudgingly.

"However, the hexes and jinxes are another matter," Sandy said, scowling in concentration. "He shouldn't just try those out… no, could be dangerous, you're right…"

"He just wouldn't listen to me," Hermione said miserably, looking distraught. "He thought I was just being a stickler for the rules…"

Sandy hugged her best mate tightly. "Hermione, he's just being irrational," she told her. "You know how men can be."

Hermione chuckled, then she grew serious once more. "Oh, could you please talk to him about that book, Sandy? You're his twin, he listens to you more than anyone else. Please?"

Sandy could not say no to the pleading look that was plastered all over Hermione's face. "Sure, Hermione. Of course I will. But I'll also tell him to stop being a prat and to listen to his girlfriend."

TIBTOTIBTOTIBTO

"Congratulations, Ron!"

Ron was besieged by a head of black hair almost as soon as he stepped off the Quidditch pitch. Recognizing the head of hair as his girlfriend, he kissed her quickly before wrapping an arm around her and leading her back toward the castle. "Thanks, Sandy," he said brightly. "I couldn't have done it without all your help."

"What help?" she asked sharply, thinking of the Confundus Charm she had put on McLaggen before the Keeper tryouts.

"Over the summer, I mean," he said, not noticing her agitation. "You helping me then gave me a lot of confidence, and I feel a lot better about my playing abilities…"

She relaxed at his words. Ron could not know about McLaggen being Confunded during tryouts, or he would break down again as he had during their fifth year.

"Hey!" said a happy looking Harry, who had just caught up with the pair of them. "First practice is Monday night at seven, so don't forget, alright?"

"Sure, mate," Ron said, a smile spreading over his face. "D'you reckon we have a good chance for the Quidditch Cup again this year, Harry?"

"Yes," Harry said at once, as Hermione caught up with them, "we've got a really great team put together. Peakes and Coote as Beaters, you as Keeper, Sandy, Ginny, and Katie as Chasers, and me as Seeker. I think we've got a _very_ good chance."

"Oh for Merlin's _sake_," said Hermione, glaring at all three of them. "We've just spent hours watching Quidditch tryouts; can't you all stop talking about Quidditch _please_?"

TIBTOTIBTOTIBTO

"D'you really think I was brilliant?"

Ron and Sandy were lying on the grass right next to the Black Lake in the shade of the large oak tree that stood next to it. It was the day following Gryffindor's first Quidditch match, and Ron had performed quite spectacularly. "Yes, Ron, for the millionth time, I do," she told him, grinning. "You know, your only _real_ problem is nerves. If you learned to control them, you'd play like that all the time."

"I know," he said, his grin fading slightly, as he continued to stare up into the blue sky at the white, fluffy clouds.

"But I knew you'd play brilliantly, if you only had the confidence," she said, "which is why I pretended to spike your drink."

"Speaking of, is Hermione still mad at you?"

"She's furious," Sandy said softly, sounding upset. "She's furious that I used her without telling her what I was planning."

"Why didn't you tell her?"

"Oh, she's a horrible actress! She would've given it away, and you would've been so nervous!" she cried. "I just wish she'd accept my apology…"

"Hey there, baby girl," Ron said, and she rolled over, cuddling with him and placing her head on his chest, where she could hear his steady, reassuring heartbeat. "She'll come round. You two are best mates- your friendship is stronger than this. Besides, if I'm not mistaken, Harry's probably wearing her down right now." He wrapped an arm around her and rubbed her back in what he hoped was a soothing fashion.

"I didn't even tell Harry why I did it," she said quietly. "I didn't want Harry to get in trouble as Captain, in case Hermione _did_ rat me out, so I didn't tell him. And then last night he was off with Hermione at the party…"

"Well, I'm sure you didn't need to tell him," Ron told her, hoping to cheer her up. "Look, if there's one thing I've noticed after hanging around you and your brother all these years, it's that you and Harry understand each other. You go through almost everything together, especially when it concerns You-Know-Who, and you have a special bond. He probably knows exactly what you were thinking when you pretended to spike my potion." He sighed, then continued, "You know, there was a time when I used to resent the relationship you had with Harry. I was jealous, and I didn't like the fact that there were some things Harry could understand about you that I couldn't. But then I realized… it's because of everything you've been through together, you know? Besides… if I ever need a look into your head, Harry's my best mate, I'm sure he'll oblige."

She laughed loudly and hit him playfully. "Oh, Ron, you're the best."

TIBTOTIBTOTIBTO

"Here's your butterbeer, Sandy."

Ron handed her a bottle of her favorite drink and she smiled, "Thank you." Then, standing on her toes so that she could peer over his shoulders, she asked hopefully, "Did you spot Harry? I wanted to tell him something."

"Well, yes," Ron said, smirking. "But I expect he's quite busy at the moment." He directed Sandy's gaze to the left, where Harry and Hermione were locked in an embrace under a sprig of mistletoe.

"Oh," Sandy said, a grin spreading over her face. "Good for him, it's about time he got some snogging done. Well, I'll just have to tell him later, then."

"What do you want to tell him?" Ron asked curiously, leaning against the dessert table now.

"Well…" she said softly, then in hushed tones she told him what she had overheard when she followed Malfoy and Snape under the Invisibility Cloak.

"Blimey," Ron said, his red eyebrows raised so high that they were threatening to disappear beneath his hair. "So d'you reckon Snape is in the league with Draco and You-Know-Who… I mean… _actually_ working for them?"

"That what it sounds like," Sandy said in low tones. "But of course all the Order is just going to say that Snape offered to help Malfoy because Dumbledore told him to." There was a certain scathing quality to her voice that told Ron that she wasn't quite pleased with the Headmaster at the moment.

"Hullo," said a voice. Harry and Hermione had chosen that moment to make their way over to them, Hermione's hair a bit unkempt, probably from her mistletoe excursion with Harry. Sandy quickly related to them what she had just told Ron.

"Well, of course Snape only said those things because Dumbledore asked him to," Hermione said quickly, casting a shrewd look in Sandy's direction.

Sandy threw Ron a look that said without words, "I told you so."

"I dunno," said Harry, running a hand through his hair. "Like I've said all along, where is the _proof_ that we can really trust Snape? I mean… why does Dumbledore trust him so much, if he used to be a Death Eater?"

"I'm sure Dumbledore has his reasons," retorted Hermione waspishly. Then, looking around at the décor, she said, "Oh, come on, you lot. This is a Christmas party! Let's not argue about Malfoy and Snape! Let's go have some fun!"

Quickly and a bit too forcefully in Sandy's opinion, Hermione seized Sandy's hand and pulled her into the thick of the party. Sandy cast a pleading look in the boys' direction, but Ron merely shrugged, as if to apologize. "Blimey," Ron said, once both the girls were gone, "what's gotten into Hermione?"

"I dunno, but as long as she pulls me under the mistletoe again before the night is over, I don't particularly care," replied Harry with a roguish grin.

TIBOTOTIBTOTIBTO

Sandy was quite alone in the Ginny's room, packing her things for their return trip to Hogwarts the following day. She paused, rubbing the scar on the back of her hand, as if it had started stinging again. She looked at it, running her index finger over it lightly. It had long since stopped hurting, but something about Scrimgeour's visit on Christmas Day had renewed her hatred of the Ministry. How could he possibly expect Harry and Sandy to stand by the Ministry after all that had happened the previous year? How could he expect them to support the Ministry when they didn't approve of its methods, when Umbridge was still employed?

She sighed loudly and returned to her packing, but was interrupted by a knock at the door. "Come in," she grunted, not bothering to look up as the door opened and the knocker entered.

"Hey," said the voice. It was Harry. He sat down on the bed she had been sleeping on and looked around. "How are you?"

"Bloody pissed off," she answered honestly, throwing a book back into her trunk with more force than was strictly necessary. She could not afford to lie to her brother, not when he was going through the same thing.

"I know," he answered, his voice low and dark. "I am too. Scrimgeour is…"

"A complete, slimy, bloody, filthy absolutely tosspot?" suggested Sandy, slamming her trunk shut loudly. In the corner of the room, Thunder stirred in his cage, looking around for the source of the noise that had awoken him. "How can we sanely support the Ministry that _tortured_ us for telling the truth?"

"We can't," he said simply. She sat heavily and wearily beside him on her bed.

"Sometimes," she said slowly, thoughtfully, "I wish we had a normal life, Harry. I wish we could just go to Hogwarts and be like everyone else. And I could be happy with Ron and you could be happy with Hermione, and Voldemort would never interfere."

"I know, Sandy," he replied, his voice barely a whisper. "I know. Me too."

TIBTOTIBTOTIBTO

"Are you going to be alright all by yourself, Sandy?"

Harry placed a firm hand on his twin's shoulder as she sat, staring blankly at Ron's still form in the hospital bed. Hermione was still sitting next to Sandy, rubbing her back soothingly. Sandy said nothing, but nodded, grasping Ron's hand tightly. "Sandy," Hermione said tentatively, "are you _sure_ you're okay?" She nodded again, still silent. "Well, alright. You know where to find us if you need us." Hermione gave her a quick hug, then stood to leave.

As Hermione slipped her hand in Harry's, he hissed at her, "I don't want to just leave her here! Look at the state of her!"

She bit her lip. "I know, Harry, and I don't like it any more than you do. But Madam Pomfrey only agreed to let her stay, and that's because she _saw_ the state she's in. Sandy's a strong girl, she'll be fine. I think she just needs to be here when he wakes up."

"Hermione-" he said, but she cut him off.

"Harry, do _you_ want to try to persuade her to come back to Gryffindor Tower with us?" she shot at him. "I think she'd have a right fit."

He sighed. "You're right, you're right." Squeezing her hand, he said, "Let's go."

It barely registered in Sandy's mind when the doors of the Hospital Wing closed. All she was aware of was Ron's still hand in hers, and her green eyes trained on his face. She would be awake and ready when he woke up, of that she was determined, no matter how long it took. She sighed and leaned forward, resting her chin on the railing of his bed, and began her vigil.

TIBTOTIBTOTIBTO

"Harry, I'd like to thank you for landing yourself in the Hospital Wing."

Harry looked startled at Sandy's words and he looked round at his sister, his mouth hanging open. "What? You're _glad_ that git McLaggen clubbed me in the head?"

"No, of course I'm not," she said, leaning back in her chair between his bed and Ron's bed. Both boys watched her with interested, wondering what she was going to say next. Hermione had, to her dismay, been forced to leave to attend classes. "And I'm going to pummel that tosspot into the ground next time I see him. But on the bright side, Madam Pomfrey really _can't_ kick me out now, even for class- I'm family."

"You just want to stay here for Ron!" Harry said accusingly, though he wore a joking smile on his face the whole time. "What a horrible sister."

She glared at him, then turned to her boyfriend. "How are you feeling?"

"Much better," he said, smiling. "Madam Pomfrey said she reckons I'll be able to leave tomorrow morning and go back to class."

"Excellent," said the twins together, both of them grinning broadly.

"What about you, Harry?" Ron asked.

"She said the same thing for me," he replied. "Just that I need to rest for a day, then I should be able to get back on my feet."

"I'm hungry," said Sandy suddenly. Then, her eyes brightening, she said, "Kreacher!"

The old house-elf appeared with a crack, grumbling and bowing low to the floor. "Mistress called? Oh, the filth on her, they say she's dating that redhead, that blood traitor… Kreacher is so ashamed to have such a Mistress…"

"Don't you talk about her like that!" Ron snarled, looking furious and turning bright red.

"Shut _up_, Kreacher!" roared Harry.

Sandy glared at both of them. Turning to Kreacher, she said, "Kreacher, can you please bring us something to eat from the kitchens? And something good too, I don't want any rubbish."

"Kreacher must obey his Mistress, blood traitor though she may be," he croaked, then he disappeared with another crack.

"I still don't like him," Ron grunted, his eyes narrow.

However, Sandy wasn't listening to him. She was looking at Harry, who had an expression of mingled wonder and excitement spread across his face. "Harry…? What are you thinking?"

TIBTOTIBTOTIBTO

"What is going _on_ in there?"

Sandy and Hermione had been walking through the corridors when they passed the boys' bathroom only to hear what sounded like a duel going on. "Sandy, maybe you shouldn't… could be dangerous…" warned Hermione, but Sandy didn't listen as she crept toward the bathroom. Lingering in the doorway, she saw two boys dueling, one blonde and one black-haired.

"Harry!" she cried, dropping her books and sprinting into the bathroom.

"Sandy, that's a boys' restroom!" Hermione screeched, rooted to the spot. However, Sandy ignored her and continued inside, holding her wand aloft.

She rounded the corner just in time to see Draco, his back to her, aim the Cruciactus Curse at Harry, who dodged it neatly. Harry pointed his wand at Draco and cried, "_Sectumsempra!_"

It was as if time itself slowed down, and everything was happening in slow motion. As soon as the incantation left Harry's mouth, Sandy knew it was something horrible. Rushing forward, she pushed Draco out of the way and the hex hit her square in the chest.

"NO!" Harry cried, as his sister fell to the ground, deep wounds etched in her chest from where the hex intended for Draco had hit her.

Draco had backed into a corner, looking utterly shocked, as though he could not comprehend what was going on around him.

Harry fell to the floor on his knees next to his sister, as Moaning Myrtle's screams of murder echoed through the castle.

TIBTOTBITOTIBTO

"Sandy… go fetch Severus… I need Severus. Harry can wait with me."

Dumbledore leaned on Harry for even more support as he spoke these words. "Yes, sir," Sandy said, nodding, then dashed into the castle, leaving her brother alone on the Astronomy Tower with the headmaster. As soon as she entered the corridor, her eyes were met with the scene of a duel. Hexes, jinxes, curses, and spells were flying everywhere. Masked Death Eaters were dueling against McGonagall, Lupin, Kingsley, Tonks, and-

"Ron! Hermione!" Sandy shrieked, spotting them amidst the chaos. They were dueling two fat Death Eaters whom she did not recognize. She made her way over to them, dodging spells and curses as she went. When she reached them, a green jet of light had just missed Ron by inches. "_Stupefy!_" she cried, pointing her wand at one of the Death Eaters, who fell to the floor, rigid.

"Sandy!" cried Hermione, hazarding a glance at her friend before returning her attention to dueling the remaining Death Eater. "When did you get back?"

"Just now," she said. "I'm supposed to be fetching Snape."

"We just saw him run by," Ron said, then, pointing his wand at the Death Eater, he cried, "_Petrificus Totalus!_"

"Nice one, Ron," Hermione said.

The three friends turned around to survey the room, then realized that everyone else had gone. "Where is everyone?" Sandy said quietly. Suddenly, a shout echoed from the direction of the Astronomy Tower.

They ran, and skidded to a halt at the foot of the steps, where the members of the Order were trying to break through what seemed to be some sort of Shield Charm. "What's going on?" asked Ron, panting.  
"The Death Eaters ran up there about ten minutes ago," replied Tonks. "Set up some sort of barrier. We can't get through, but we're trying."

"_REDUCTO!_" cried McGonagall, her wand pointed at the shield, but it did nothing.

Then, suddenly, footsteps echoed from the stairway, and the Death Eaters appeared at the foot of the stairs. Duels erupted once more, but as Sandy turned to help Ron and Hermione take on Fenrir Greyback, someone ran into her from behind.

"Ouch!" she cried, picking herself up off the floor and raising her wand. Seeing that it was Harry, she said, "Oh, it's you. Look, I don't know where Snape is, can you tell- what's wrong? Harry, what is it?" She had caught sight of the distraught look on his face.

"Dumbledore's dead! Snape killed Dumbledore!"

TIBTOTIBTOTIBTO

Sandy sat alone with Ron in the Gryffindor common room the night before they were to leave Hogwarts.

Was it still Hogwarts, really?

Dumbledore. Dead.

Dead. Dumbledore.

Dumbledore was dead.

She just couldn't seem to connect the two words in her mind. How could Dumbledore, the man who had protected her all these years, possibly be dead? How could he be dead at the hands of Severus Snape, the man he trusted when everyone else doubted him? It seemed inconceivable.

Ron interrupted her thoughts, clearing his throat. "I'm going with you, you know. Hermione is, too. If you and Harry are going to go looking for the Horcruxes, you aren't going to do it alone."

She snapped shut the journal she had been writing in and looked round at him. "No, Ronald," she said firmly, her voice unwavering. Something about Dumbledore's death had given her an odd kind of strength, rather than weakening her. She knew what had to be done, and nothing was going to stop her now. "It's too dangerous. I don't want you to get hurt. You're already in enough danger, dating me."

"Danger?" he echoed, his tone scoffing. "You think I'm worried about danger? Sandy, I know I haven't done nearly as much as you or your brother have, but give me some credit. Did I or did I not help you and Harry get to the Sorcerer's Stone in first year?"

"Yes, we wouldn't have won that game of wizard's chess without you, but-" she replied, but he interrupted her.

"Did I or did I not go into the Chamber of Secrets with you in our second year to rescue Ginny?"

"Well, yes, you did, however-"

"Did I or did I not-" he started, but she stood up, flushed red, and turned to face him, hands on her hips.

"I get it, Ron!" she said loudly. "Yes, you've done more than your fair share of dangerous things in the time we've known each other! In fact, I'm not entirely sure Harry and I would have gotten through those things without you and Hermione! But, Ron, this is something entirely different. This is… this is hunting Horcruxes. Voldemort's Horcruxes. And sooner or later, he's going to realize what we're after. And Ron… it's not that I don't think you're capable, I know you are. But we've all had our close calls. And Ron… I just… I can't bear to lose you."

She resumed her seat, facing away from him this time. "Sandy…" he started gently, but she did not look at him.

"No," she said, her voice thick with tears. "No, you're not going. As for Hermione, that's between her and Harry. I'm worried about her, too, of course, but Harry would suffer far more than I if something happened to her. Ron, I can't lose you, too. I just can't." He watched helplessly as her shoulders shook with the force of her sobs. She was no longer bothering to hide the fact that she was crying, and she was whimpering softly. "I won't be able to keep in touch while Harry and I are away… it'll be too dangerous. But I reckon Voldemort will want it to be known if we're killed. So you'll know as long as we're alive." She cried even harder at this, and she was no longer able to speak.

"Sandy," he said softly, "come here." Slowly, she made her way over to him, sitting on his lap. She buried her face in his chest, still bawling, as his arms made their way tightly around her. He pressed a kiss into her black hair, and murmured, "Shhh… it's alright, love. Everything is alright."

"I can't lose you," she told him through her tears. "I can't lose you, not you."

"Shhhh," was all he said, holding her even tighter to his chest, pressing more and more kisses into her hair. When her tears finally subsided, he cupped her face in his hands, gently forcing her to look him in the eyes. "Listen to me," he said firmly. "Sandy, I'm coming with you. There's no way I'm abandoning you and Harry, not now, of all times. And…"

She cocked her head at him. "And what?"

"Just as much as you can't bear to lose me, I can't bear to lose you," he said, looking her directly in the eyes. "I once told you that I knew it wouldn't be easy, being your boyfriend, but that you were more than worth it. I still stand by that. You mean the _world_ to me, Sandy, and I can't let you go. Not like this. So please, _please_ don't make me."

"Alright, Ron."

TIBTOTIBTOTIBTO

"It's weird," said Hermione slowly, as she, Harry, Sandy, and Ron sat together in a compartment on the Hogwarts Express, "to think that we'll never come back."

They sat in silence for a moment, before Harry broke it. "Who says we'll never come back?"

"But Harry," Ron said, looking confused, "we all agreed that we're dropping out next year, to go look for the Horcruxes."

"Oh, I know," he said, exchanging an almost conspiratorial look with his twin, "but I think… if we survive… that I'd like to come back and finish my schooling. You know… have a quiet year for once."

Sandy chuckled. "Harry, you know we'll never be able to have a quiet year at Hogwarts."

"Still," he said, shrugging, "it'd be nice to try, wouldn't it?"

Together, the four friends heartily agreed.

And together, the four friends went on to face perhaps the greatest challenge of their lives.


	7. Chapter 7

**A/N: Don't own, don't sue. Please, please review. **

Year the Seventh

"No! Absolutely not!" Sandy, green eyes alight, scolded Moody, who was standing in the Dursleys' kitchen, holding two flasks of Polyjuice Potion. Harry's facial expression mirrored that of his twin.

"I told you so," Hermione said smugly to Moody. "They're both far too noble to agree to it."

"Sandy, love," Ron said, coming up behind his girlfriend and putting an arm around her shoulders, "we're all of age. You can't stop us."

"I don't want you to," she insisted.

"We don't want any of you to get hurt," Harry said.

"We're all quite prepared to take the risk," Mr. Weasley assured them. Mundungus grunted doubtfully from his spot in the corner.

Sandy and Harry exchanged glances. Finally, Harry reluctantly said, "So how's this going to work?"

Moody smiled briefly. "Ron will be transforming into Harry, and Hermione into Sandy. The real Sandy will travel with Ron and Tonks, and the real Harry will travel with Hermione and Hagrid." At this, Ron squeezed Sandy's shoulders tightly, and she smiled brightly at him, despite her worries. Moody continued, "Fred and George and Mundungus and Fleur will each complete another set of Potter twins. Fred and George will travel with Arthur, and Mundungus and Fleur will travel with me."

"Why do I 'ave to be wi' choo, eh?" Mundungus asked Moody in surly manner.

"Because you're the one that's mostly likely to ditch at the first sign of trouble," Moody snapped back. "Don't you screw this up, Dung, or I'll have your wand."

TIBTOTIBTOTIBTO

"Oh!"

Hermione had been on her way to the loo when someone reached out of a bedroom and pulled her inside. "Thank Merlin," breathed a voice. Harry. "I haven't had you to myself for a single minute since we got here."

Gathering her bearings, Hermione looked up at her boyfriend and smiled ruefully. "It seems Mrs. Weasley doesn't want us to be able to make any plans."

"Apparently," Harry agreed, grimacing. "That woman is way too good at keeping us busy."

"Well, there is a lot of work to be done," she admitted, "what with the wedding coming up and all." Looking up at him carefully, she asked him, "How are you, Harry?"

He shrugged. "I won't tell you that I'm okay, Hermione, that would be a lie," he told her, wrapping his arms around her. "But… as you can see, I'm not a wreck either. I'm about as okay as any person in my situation can be. It helps having Ron, Sandy, and you around." He kissed her forehead softly. "It helps a lot."

Meanwhile, Ron and Sandy were busy degnoming the garden. "Why is it always bloody me," Ron grunted, seizing a gnome roughly by its head, "that has to bloody degnome the bloody garden?"

"I think she feels bad, asking Harry, Hermione and me to do it," Sandy told him, brushing some dirt off her hands. "She only let me help you because I insisted."

He grunted his agreement. "I can't wait until this wedding is over with." With that, he hurled the last of the gnomes into the distance. He sat down on the ground, and Sandy joined him a moment later. "Are you scared?"

"Yes."

"Even with me by your side?"

"Well, that's just it. I'm scared of losing you. You know I didn't want you to come."

"Sandy, you're bloody mental if you think I'm letting you go without me. I would never forgive myself."

Sitting up suddenly, she said, "Promise me something."

"Anything."

Snorting at his clichéd response before continuing, she replied, "If something happens to me… if I die-"

He interrupted her. "No," he said shortly, shaking his head. "No, I won't talk about this."

"Ron, don't be ridiculous. It's a very real possibility," she said, trying to reason with him.

"No," he insisted, sounding somewhat like a child now. "No, I won't talk about it. Please don't bring this up again. Ever."

TIBTOTIBTOTIBTO

"It's so nice, watching Bill and Fleur get married and everyone being happy… I almost forgot about Voldemort for a moment." Sandy sighed in a bittersweet fashion.

Her brother sighed. "I know what you mean. That happens to me, when I'm alone with Hermione. Sometimes… it all just melts away. But then-"

"-reality comes back," she finished for him. "Trust me, been there, done that. Harry, I just want this over and done with. I want this over with so we can all move on with our lives and just be happy and _normal_."

"Have you… have you considered the possibility that we might not survive this?"

"Of course I have," she said softly. "I've written a will, leaving mostly everything to the Grangers and Weasleys. A few things go to Neville, Luna, and few odd people like that, but… yes, I have. But after I finished my will, I stopped letting myself think about it at all."

He cocked his head at her curiously. "Why?"

"Because in order for us to have any chance at success, we both need to believe that we cannot fail," she said. "We simply can't lose hope."

"Excuse me," said a voice. Ron appeared in front of them, smiling broadly and looking nervous. "Good sir, do you mind if I steal away this lovely young woman for a dance?"

"Not at all," Harry told him, grinning.

Ron took Sandy's hand in his and led her out to the dance floor. He took her waist and drew her as close as possible to him as he could in public. She noticed that his hands were shaking slightly. "Are you enjoying yourself?" he asked her.

"Surprisingly, yes," she said, nodding and smiling softly. "It's nice to remember that things like happiness and weddings still exist."

"Yeah, Bill seems happy, doesn't he?"

"Oh definitely," she said, grinning and glancing sideways at the bridge and groom who were locked in a very passionate embrace on the dance floor. She leaned her head against his chest briefly and heard his heart beating a wild tattoo against his rib cage. "Ron, are you all right? You seem nervous."

"Can I… can I talk to you outside?" he asked, taking her hand and starting to pull her out of the tent before she had even assented.

As soon as they were outside, he began to pace back and forth, muttering under his breath to himself. "Ron, what is it? Are you okay?" she asked, staring at him in concern.

"Sandy," he said, finally addressing her, though he looked at his shoes instead of at her face, "I want you to know that I'm not just asking you this because of the times. It's not just because I'm scared or because of what we're about to do or anything like that. It's because of all that that I'm asking you _now_, but I would've asked somewhere down the line no matter what. It's important for you to understand, I don't want you to take this the wrong way-"

"Ron," she interrupted, holding up her hands to stop his babbling. "I get it. Where are you going with this?"

He fumbled in his pocket for something as he said, "You know that I love you, right?"

"Of course I do, Ronald. And I love you. Always will."

"Then… will you marry me?"

TIBTOTIBTOTIBTO

"Sandy… what is that on your finger?"

Hermione and Sandy had been cleaning out the living room of Grimmauld Place, making it a bit more fit for human habitation, when Hermione caught sight of the sapphire engagement ring on Sandy's finger. "Oh…" Sandy said, freezing as she realized that she hadn't told neither Hermione nor Harry about her and Ron's engagement yet. Almost immediately after she said yes, Kingsley's Patronus had arrived at the wedding, informing them of the fall of the Ministry. In the chaos that ensued, she hadn't found the time to tell her brother or her best friend.

"Is that what I think it is?" Hermione said, her voice rising in pitch and in decibel with every syllable. "Is that an _engagement ring_?"

Sandy beamed and simply said, "Yes."

Hermione nearly tackled her with a hug. "Oh, congratulations, Sandy! But why didn't you tell me? When did this happen? Does Harry know?"

"Slow down, 'Mione," Sandy said, returning to her cleaning as she talked. "I didn't tell you because he asked me at the wedding, and right after, the Death Eaters started showing up. I just couldn't find time to tell you. And unless Ron has told him, no, Harry doesn't know yet. Please don't tell him- I should be the one to tell him."

"Of course, of course," Hermione said happily. "Oh, I'm so happy for you two!"

"When he asked, he told me that he was asking now because he felt it was right, what with all the war going on around us. But he repeatedly assured me that war or no war, he would've asked me somewhere down the line. He babbled on for minutes about that. It was rather cute, actually."

"Does his family know?" she asked. "I'm sure Mrs. Weasley is almost as upset about Bill and Fleur's wedding reception being interrupted as not being able to fuss over your engagement."

"I… I don't actually know," Sandy admitted rather sheepishly. "He hasn't said anything about them knowing, but he also hasn't said anything about them not knowing. It's so difficult to tell, since we Disapparated literally right after he asked me."

Sensing her friend's sadness, Hermione said softly, "Hey, don't worry, Sandy. After this is all over, it'll all work just perfectly. I'm sure of it. And I'm _never_ wrong."

Sandy snorted. "Know-it-all."

TIBTOTIBTOTIBTO

"Why didn't he tell us anything?" Sandy screeched in frustration, aiming a kick at a rock. The rock went flying through the air and landed in a pile of leaves nearby.

"I don't know," Harry said meekly, unaccustomed to seeing his twin lose her temper this badly. In an attempt to mollify her, he said, "Sandy, we have found the locket-"

"Yes, but do we know how to destroy it?" she interrupted, whirling around, her green eyes flaming with anger. "Apparently, Dumbledore didn't think that knowing how to _destroy_ these Horcruxes that we're supposed to be finding was important!"

Harry's eyes landed on the locket bouncing on his sister's chest. "Take it off," he ordered. "Take the bloody locket off, Sandy, it's messing with you." When she didn't move and merely stared at him, he crossed the distance between them in two steps and swiftly took the locket off and over her head. After he put it on himself, he asked, "How are you feeling now?"

"Calmer," she replied, "and much better. Thank you." She flashed him a small smile. "I'm sorry about that."

"It's alright," he told her. "None of us should wear the locket for very long." After a moment, he asked her, "How's Ron?"

"I dunno, really," she shrugged, sounding suddenly sad. "He's barely talked to me since that day at the Ministry… he always answers me in one word or short phrases. I dunno what's gotten into him."

"Maybe he's just been feeling unwell since he got splinched," Harry suggested hopefully.

His twin shrugged, looking down at her feet. "I don't think that's it. 'Mione and I have him almost completely healed up now. He shouldn't be in much pain, if any at all. I think there's something on his mind… I think maybe he's angry at me…"

TIBTOTIBTOTIBTO

"You have no family!"

Ron's voice echoed in the sudden silence that filled the tent. The only sounds that could be heard were Hermione's soft gasp and Sandy's almost imperceptible tears.

Harry sucked in a deep breath, holding himself back from launching himself at Ron, who had at some time, a time that felt like a million years ago, been his best friend, only for Sandy's sake. "Leave then. If you want to go back home to your mum, just leave," he told Ron coldly.

"Fine," Ron said stiffly. He grabbed his rucksack and turned on his heel to go. Pausing at the flap of the tent, he said to Sandy, "Well?"

"What?" she asked, tears pouring down her stunned face. "You can't honestly be asking me to choose between you and Harry…"

"Oh, don't worry," Ron spat at her. "I've always known that he's more important to you than me." With that he left the tent.

A quick moment of silence followed his exit, then Sandy ran out of the tent. Ron was almost to the edge of their protective boundaries. "Ron!" she bellowed. He paused, but he did not look at her. "If you leave, we're over. I mean it!"

He turned around, and his blue eyes were cold and distant. "Newsflash, Sandy," he sneered at her cruelly, "I wouldn't want to marry a girl who would choose her brother over me anyway."

"Take this then," she spat at him, though her hands were shaking as she threw her engagement ring at him. "Leave, Ron. Don't come back."

TIBTOTIBTOTIBTO

"Come on, Sandy. You've got to eat _something_."

Hermione attempted to coax her best mate into eating, waving an unappetizing raw mushroom in front of her face, but Sandy merely stared blankly ahead. "No thanks, 'Mione," she mumbled. "I'm not hungry."

"You haven't been hungry since R-" Hermione started, but she cut her off.

"Don't say it. Please?" Sandy pleaded. Hermione sighed and set the bowl of mushrooms down in front of Sandy.

"Well, they're here if you change your mind," she said quietly.

Just then, Harry entered the tent. Catching Hermione's eye, he raised his eyebrows at her. In reply, she shook her head. He frowned and beckoned her to him. She followed him outside the tent once more. "She's not any better, is she?" Harry asked worriedly.

"No," Hermione replied honestly. "She's still refusing to eat. She cries herself to sleep every night. I don't know what to do. Harry, why don't you talk to her?"

"I'm scared, Hermione," he admitted, after a few moments of careful silence.

"Of what?"

"I'm scared that she blames me for Ron leaving. I'm the one who told him to go." He looked at her, biting his lip, daring her to contradict him.

"Oh, Harry," she said, stroking his cheek with her hand, feeling his slight stubble. "She's not angry with you. She doesn't blame you. Ron decided to leave long before you told him to, and she knows that. Go talk to her. I think you'll help a lot. She needs her brother right now."

"You really think so?"

"I know so." Hermione leaned in and gave Harry a long, hard kiss. "I love you."

"I love you too, Hermione."

TIBTOTIBTOTIBTO

"Harry… over here."

Even to Sandy, her voice sounded weak and distant. She supposed her voice had grown hoarse in its weeks of disuse since Ron's departure. She made every effort to push Ron out of her mind as she knelt in the snow before her parent's grave and began to cry. Her tears were so thick that she did not see anything when Harry knelt next to her, but rather she heard the soft thump his knees made in the snow. He wrapped an arm around her and she buried her face in his chest, sobbing loudly.

Hermione came up behind them, feeling slightly as though she were intruding, and placed a hand on each twin.

With a shaking hand, Sandy reached out and softly caressed the headstone. "Oh, Harry…" she sobbed, unable to put into words how it felt to be this close to their parents.

"I know, Sandy," he said softly, a few tears streaming down his face. "I know."

TIBTOTIBTOTIBTO

Sandy kept her eyes trained on the sword of Godric Gryffindor as the icy cold water began to swallow her. It was all she could do not to open her mouth and cry out in pain and knives of cold stabbed every inch of her exposed skin. Just as she reached out a hand to grab the sword, the locket around her neck tightened, choking her… Harry and Hermione were sleeping soundly in the tent, there was no way they'd find her here in time… she began to flail wildly underwater… after all she'd been through, she was going to die, like this, drowned in an icy pool by a bit of Voldemort's soul…

Suddenly, another figure appeared in the pool and hauled Sandy upward to the surface, to safety. She landed roughly on the cold ground, coughing and sputtering, looking around for her savior.

"Are you bloody mad?" demanded a very familiar, sorely missed voice.

She whipped around to find herself face to face with Ron. "You!" she shrieked, standing up quickly and advancing dangerously toward him. "What the bloody hell around you doing here? You left! I told you we were over! I told you not to come back!"

"I knew I was bang out of order the minute I left, love," he told her, trying to mollify her, "but there was no way to find you once I stepped outside the protective boundary."

"Don't," she said sharply, "call me 'love'!" she shrieked.

"Perhaps you'd like to put some clothes on?" he suggested, turning bright red as his eyes slowly ran up and down her body. She had forgotten that she had stripped down to her underwear before diving into the water.

Grumbling to herself, she began to put her clothes back on. When she was done, she snapped, "Well, did you at least get the sword?"

"Yeah," he said, holding it up for her to see, "I figured that's what you dove in for. How'd you find it in there?"

"Didn't you cast the doe Patronus?" she asked curiously, all the anger gone from her voice for the first time since he had arrived.

"No," he said. "Mine's a dog, remember? I thought you had. Yours is a doe."  
"I know, but I didn't cast this one…"

TIBTOTIBTOTIBTO

"How long d'you think she'll stay mad at me?"

Ron and Harry were talking inside in the tent in hushed tones while Hermione and Sandy sat outside by the fire. "I dunno, mate. She was really cut up after you left. Hermione and I had to force her to eat," Harry told him. Seeing Ron's guilty look, he continued, "But I do know this- she still loves you. She always will."

"I still have this," Ron said, pulling the engagement ring she had thrown at him out of his pocket. "I'm planning to propose to her again when she's not mad at me anymore. But she won't even let me touch her…" He looked about on the verge of tears. "I know I screwed up big time, Harry, mate, but she's the world to me. I can't lose her. It was terrible being away from her, but it's almost as bad, being here and having her furious at me all the while."

Harry patted him on the back. "She'll come around, Ron. Hermione and I did. She just needs some time."

TIBTOTIBTOTIBTO

Once Harry and Sandy were finished burying Dobby, Sandy sat down on the ground, hugged her knees to her chest, and finally let the tears come. Harry sat with her for a while, his arm around her, but after a while, he got up to leave. Looking up through her tears, Sandy pleaded, "Please don't go."

"Ron's heading over," he told her. "I think he wants to talk to you alone. I'll be inside the cottage if you need me." He bent down and placed a brotherly kiss on the top of her head.

Seconds after Harry left, Ron sat down next to her. "Sandy… I know you probably don't want me right now, but I just want you to know, I'm right here if you need me."

She then kissed him so quickly that he barely saw it coming, but he wrapped his arms around her and pulled her closer to him. It had been so long since had touched her, held her, kissed… he relished in the feel of her lips on his, and he groaned when she pulled away. "Ron, I'm sorry I've been so angry with you since you came back."

"Don't be sorry," he told her. "You had every right to be. I was complete arse to you and to your brother."

"Well, I've been a bitch ever since you got back. I've been trying to act like I didn't miss you, when the truth was… I was a mess the entire time you were gone," she said. "And… I'm sorry I threw the engagement ring at you. It must be sitting in the middle of the forest floor still."

"Not exactly…" he said, rummaging around in his pocket. Holding out the ring for her to see, he said, "I picked it up after you went back into the tent but before I left. Angry as I was, the ring meant too much to me to just let it lay there. I've been hoping that you'll take it back… that you'll agree to marry me again." He looked at her hopefully.

"Yes, Ronald," she said happily and he slipped the ring back onto her left ring finger.

"You've made me so very happy today, Sandy Potter," he told her brightly, kissing her again, reveling in how good she tasted. His arms locked around her waist, and her hands busied themselves in his bright red hair. When the kiss finally ended, he murmured, "I love you, Sandy. I always will."

"I love you too, Ron."

TIBTOTIBTOTIBTO

"Snape… Snape loved our mum?"

Harry looked incredulously at his sister as soon as they exited the Pensieve. "Well, I suspected as much when I saw his memory back in fifth year, the one that took place right after his Defense Against the Dark Arts O.W.L," she replied. "I could just tell. But I never… I never suspected _this_." She made a wild gesture with her arm. "That he'd spent the rest of his life protecting us… for her."

"You know what we have to do, don't you?" Harry said, looking at her morosely.

"Yes," she nodded, fully aware of the time that was slipping through their fingers. "It's time to fulfill the prophecy."

Only one of them was Horcrux, that Dumbledore and Snape had made apparent through the Pensieve. But no one could be sure which one. And in Dumbledore's (though they supposed it now belonged to Snape) office, looking intently at each other with matching emerald green eyes, they both knew that it mattered not. Harry would not allow his sister to march herself to Voldemort in order to be sacrificed whether they knew for sure that she was the Horcrux or not, and vice versa. Though it felt like a million years ago, only two years previously they had sat in these exact chairs, having just heard the prophecy, and decided that they were in this together, no matter what. Now was not the time to have a change of heart. Just as they had once miraculously escaped death together, so they would present themselves for slaughter together.

Grasping his sister's hand tightly, Harry said thickly, "We should go. The more time we waste…"

"We can't just… we have to say goodbye," Sandy countered. He knew she was referring to Ron and Hermione. "It's not fair to them, to leave them with no explanation. To just leave them to deal with the consequences. We have to explain, at least to them."

"Alright," Harry consented, grabbing two pieces of parchment, two quills, and two inkpots from the desk before them. "Start writing."

_Dear Ron, _

_ You knew this might happen. In the end. We both knew, I think. Our time together… it's been brief, but wonderful. You've given me the happiest times of my life. I fear perhaps our time together was too short. During our traveling days, I often dreamed of a life without Voldemort, without worries… a life with you. Now I know that can never be. _

_ I'm not sure you'll be able to understand. I know all you'll be able to comprehend is this loss. The loss of your best mate and your fiancée. Please try to understand- we had to. This is the only way he can be stopped. One of us has a piece of him inside us, Ron, and there is no way to be sure which one of us it is. I can't let Harry sacrifice himself. We're in this together. We promised each other, no matter what. We were going to stop Voldemort together, or die trying together. Please try to understand. _

_ Please try to be happy. Please try to move on. I love you, Ronald. I always have. And I always will. _

_ Love, _

_ Sandy _

**Dear Hermione, **

** I long to see your face one last time. To hold you in my arms again before I have to go. But I know that if I see you again, I will never be able to bring myself to go into that forest. And I must, Hermione. Please try to understand that. I must go to him. **

** Either Sandy or me is a Horcrux. It happened the night he tried to kill us. No one can be sure which one of us is the Horcrux. But does it really matter? Could I let my sister sacrifice herself, Horcrux or not? No. And I know she cannot allow me to do so either. She's the only family I have, Hermione, and we have to stick together. I've promised her this, and I've promised myself this. She and I will always stick together. **

** Please forgive me, Hermione. Please always remember me as the eleven year old boy who rescued you from a mountain troll in the girls' lavatory. I love you. **

** Much love, **

** Harry **

"Ready?" Sandy asked, seeing her brother set down the quill with which he had been writing.

Harry sniffed, not bothering to wipe away the tears that had made their way down his face while he had been writing his letter. "Yes," he nodded. "How are we going to get these to them?"

"Leave them in the girls' dormitory. Hermione will make sure Ron gets his."

TIBTOTIBTOTIBTO

_"Avada Kedavra!"_

Voldemort's shrill cry echoed through the eerie silence of the Great Hall. At the same time, two cries of, _"Expelliarmus!"_ sounded.

It was the moment of truth. Were the twins right? Would the Elder Wand recognize that, during their bout at Malfoy Manor, Sandy and Harry had tackled Malfoy to the floor and wrested the wands he held in his hands from him?

A blinding flash of green light, then the room returned to normal. Tom Riddle lay dead on the floor, killed by his own curse. The Elder Wand lay secure in the grasp of the twins; each had one hand on it.

Then time took on its usual pace and noise erupted in the Great Hall. It was finally over.

Sandy was suddenly swept off her feet by Ron, who picked her up and spun her around. "Put me down!" she demanded, and he immediately set her back on her feet, kissing her fiercely as he did so.

"Don't you ever," he said sternly, pulling away just for a moment, "scare me like that again. I cannot even put into words how depressed I was in those moments I believed you to be dead." He resumed kissing her, his arms wrapping around her. When he felt her shaking, he pulled away once more and was surprised to see her crying. "What's wrong, love?"

"I'm so sorry about… about… Fred," she sobbed, throwing herself onto him. "And Lupin and Tonks… and now Teddy has no parents! It's all my fault!"

"No, love, no," he said, sounding appalled. "Don't you think that. This was all much bigger than you and Harry. They were fighting for freedom. Don't you understand? You made sure they did not die in vain. Shhhh."

And he continued to comfort her as she cried.

Meanwhile, Harry was nearly tackled to the ground by a head of bushy brown hair. "Oh, Harry!" Hermione sobbed into his chest, her grip vice-like on him. "You're okay? You're alive! Oh, Harry, Harry!"

His arms wrapped around her immediately. "Hermione, calm down," he told her. "It's all over, okay, sweetie? It's all done. I'm here, I'm not going anywhere. I love you."

TIBTOTIBTOTIBTO

That night, Harry found his twin in her usual spot by the fire in the old Gryffindor common room. She looked up upon hearing him enter, and she said, "I couldn't take all the people calling me a hero anymore. So many… dead…"

He nodded and sat next to her. "They were fighting for something they believed in. There's not a more honorable death in the world."

She nodded. "Well. D'you reckon we can have a normal life now?"

He chuckled. "I reckon so."


	8. Epilogue

**A/N: Don't own, don't sue. **

Epilogue

"Rise and shine!"

Sunlight poured into the room, and bleary-eyed Sandy rubbed her eyes. Glancing at the clock that sat on their nightstand, she groaned, "Bloody hell, Ron, why in the name of Merlin's saggy left buttock are you waking me up so early for?" Without waiting for his answer, she grabbed her wand from the nightstand with her left hand, a wedding ring sparkling on her ring finger, and shut the blinds.

As she set her wand back down, Ron ran one hand down her side, saying softly, "Come on, love. It's Christmas morning, and I know it's early, but the kids will be up soon." He leaned forward and planted a firm kiss on her lips. Despite her earlier grumpiness, he felt her lips curving into a grin beneath his.

Almost as if on cue, two children burst into their room, accompanied by much shouting. "Ewww, Mummy and Daddy are kissing, Fredie!" shouted a four-year old girl, wrinkling her small nose and launching herself onto their bed in between. Her long red hair was flying everywhere, and green eyes were alight with Christmas joy. "Can we open our present now _please_?"

"Not yet, Susanna," Ron said, fondly tucking a strand of his daughter's red hair behind her ear.

"Why not?" demanded two year old Fred, pouting.

"We have to wait for Uncle Harry and Aunt Hermione," Sandy explained patiently, gathering her small son into a great big, cuddly hug.

"Why do we call her Aunt Hermione if her and Uncle Harry aren't even married yet?" asked Susanna, ever ambitious.

"Because they're going to get married one day very soon, mark my words," Ron told her, tapping her nose playfully. "Now who wants some of Daddy's waffles?"

"I do, I do!" the children chorused, and Ron picked them both up and carried them down into the kitchen, leaving his contented wife alone in their bedroom to get dressed.

TIBTOTIBTOTIBTO

"Hermione, will you hurry _up_?" Harry cried impatiently. "I told Sandy and Ron we'd be over at ten, and it's nearly eleven now. She's going to think we've stood them up."

"Relax, Harry," came the voice of Hermione, his perpetual girlfriend, through the bathroom door. "Since when have you ditched your sister for anything important?"

"Um…."

"Exactly. Never. She's just going to assume I'm taking forever. So shut up."

Harry sighed, feeling the box of the engagement ring in his jacket pocket. When was he ever going to work up the nerve to ask Hermione to marry him? He sighed again, louder this time. He needed to talk to his sister.

TIBTOTIBTOTIBTO

"Harry!"

Sandy hugged her brother tightly at the front door of the house she shared with Ron. Catching sight of Hermione, she hugged her too, exclaiming, "'Mione! It's so good to see you two!"

"Er, Hermione," Harry said, somewhat nervous, "why don't you go bring the treacle tart into Ron? Ask him to show you where to put it."

Hermione gave her boyfriend an inquisitive look, but made her way into the Weasley house. "What's wrong, Harry?" Sandy asked her twin as soon as Hermione was out of earshot. She took his hand in hers. "You look really nervous."

"Sandy, I don't know how I'm going to do it, I'm never going to work up the nerve, she's going to be girlfriend for the rest of my life," he spat out rather quickly.

Somehow, she understood him, and her green eyes lit up with joy. "Oh, Harry! Does this mean-?"

Nodding, he pulled the box out of his pocket and opened it, showing the brilliant diamond ring that lay within to her. "It's gorgeous," she breathed. Grasping his shoulders tightly, she told him, "Relax, Harry. You've faced things much more terrifying than this. The right moment will present itself in due time. Just relax."

"Right," he murmured, more to himself than to her. "Right. Of course you're right." He opened his mouth as if to ask her something else, but at that precise moment, Susanna came hurtling down the hallway toward him.

"Uncle Harry!" she squealed, as he picked her hip and planted a kiss on her chubby cheek. "Aunt Hermione told me you were here."

"And I sure am," he told her brightly. "Are you ready to open your presents, love?"

"Oh, yes, yes!" Susanna cried, squealing with delight in the safety of her uncle's arms. "What did you and Aunt Hermione get me?"

"You'll have to open it to see, now won't you? It's a surprise 'til then, Susanna…"

Harry carried his niece into the drawing room, grinning at his sister as he passed her. Smiling to herself at the thought of Harry proposing to Hermione, Sandy made her way into the kitchen, where she found Ron attempting to stuff a turkey by hand. Hermione was perched on the counter, a smug, amused look plastered over her pretty face. "Ron, what _are_ you doing?" Sandy asked, taking in the scene before her.

"I'm trying to stuff this bleeding turkey," Ron said, jabbing his wand at the dead bird in utter frustration, making it burst into flames, which Sandy hastily put out. "But I don't know the spell! And Hermione won't help me!"

"Don't lie, Ronald Weasley," Hermione reprimanded him. "I offered to help you, but you insisted that you had it handled."

Rolling her green eyes, Sandy waved her own wand at the turkey and murmured a spell under her breath. The turkey magically stuffed itself. "There, now how difficult was that?" she asked, as she put it in the oven. "Harry's got Susanna and Fred in the drawing room, if you lot are ready to open presents."

"Ooh, yes!" Hermione squealed, jumping off of her perch on the counter and cantering into the drawing room.

"Thanks," Ron murmured softly to his wife, giving her a tight hug and a swift kiss on the cheek.

"It's not a problem," she told him. With a devilish gleam in her eye, she added, "But I expect payment later tonight, Ronald Weasley."

"P-payment?" he stammered, turning bright red. He thought he knew what she had in mind.

"In the bedroom."

With a wink and a twirl, she disappeared into the drawing room after Hermione.

Ron ran a hand through his bright red hair. "Bloody hell."

TIBTOTIBTOTIBTO

"It's so beautiful."

Hermione admired the scenery around them as she walked hand in hand with Harry. She had persuaded him to walk the short walk home from Sandy and Ron's house to theirs, for the sole purpose of admiring the snow. "It is," he agreed, smiling at the joy that showed itself upon her face.

"Susanna and Fred are such a joy," Hermione said suddenly. "I'd love to have children too, someday. I'd love to have them… with you."

Harry felt himself go as red as Ron's hair. This must be it. This was what Sandy was talking about- the right moment. "Actually," he said, feeling his heart rate accelerate, "I've been meaning to talk to you about that, Hermione."

"Oh?" she said, curiously, stopping in her tracks and raising her brown brows at him. "Go on then, Harry."

"I… I've been wondering… Hermione, you told me once that even through all the pain, sorrows, and troubles, you still saw me as the eleven-year old boy who saved you from a mountain troll in the girls' lavatory."

"I remember," she said, a soft smile spreading over her face. "I still do, Harry. That's the essence of your character. That's what drew me to you in the first place."

Her reply bolstered what little confidence he had, and he found the strength to continue. "Good. Hermione, we've been together for several years now. You're the love of my life, you're the only woman I'll ever love. Will you do me the honor of being my wife?" He pulled out of the box and opened it, showing her the diamond ring.

"Yes, Harry. I will."

TIBTOTIBTOTIBTO

"Well, Susanna and Fred are sound asleep," announced Ron, plopping himself down onto the bed next to his reading wife.

She shut her book, having dog-eared the page she was on, and placed the book on the nightstand. "You do remember what you owe me, don't you?" she said, looking at him with a stern expression on her face, though the twinkle in her green eyes gave her away.

"How could I forget?" he asked, wrapping his arms around her and kissing her fiercely. "I swear, Sandy, you hid this naughty side of you better than a Demiguise."

"I wanted to surprise you," she said, biting back a moan as he slid her pants off.

As he planted kisses down the column of her neck, he breathed, "You know, being with you is always so much better than being alone, Sandy. Infinitely better, even."

She chuckled. "Two is better than one, Ronald."


End file.
